


Believe in me, for i believe in you

by Wolfinshipclothing



Series: Made of Light [2]
Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Flora & Fauna, Alternate Character Interpretation, Angst and Humor, Anxiety Attacks, Emotional Manipulation, Enemies to Friends, Everyone is a bit of a jerk, Evil Steven Universe, Gen, Homeworld Gems - Freeform, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Suicide, Light!Steven, Lightverse, Mind Games, Not Beta Read, Self-Esteem Issues, Self-Harm, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, but they all trying!, i mean not evil but he is more manipulative, thats the name of this au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-24
Updated: 2020-03-19
Packaged: 2021-02-27 06:29:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 3
Words: 21,475
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22382614
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wolfinshipclothing/pseuds/Wolfinshipclothing
Summary: Steven always knew he was meant to be powerful. He just never thought THIS powerful.Now, after another power outburst, he decides to seek help in the only gem who could knew about Pink’s Diamond’s powers.The bad news. She tried to kill him once.The good news. He is used to that by now.The worst news. The gem is Spinel.Things can only go downhill from here.
Relationships: Blue Diamond & Spinel & White Diamond & Yellow Diamond (Steven Universe), Pink Diamond's Pearl & Spinel (Steven Universe), Spinel & Steven Universe
Series: Made of Light [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1611175
Comments: 19
Kudos: 89





	1. Pink pals

**Author's Note:**

> Well, i decided to make a follow up of my Jasper story. This one, and the ones following this, will be centered around the original idea: that Steven is more powerful than he anticipated and very aware of this.
> 
> I called this series "Made of Light", but i will also tag it "Lightverse" and "Light!Steven" to make it easier to find.
> 
> This fic in particular will be centered more about Steven and a bit about Spinel... Gosh, the material that you could write between these two its too good! 
> 
> I hope you guys like it.

"Oh, you are such an insufferable brute!"

The yell came not too far away from where Steven was chatting with a newcomer gem, but it may have been heard all around Little Homeworld for all he knew.

He huffed. "Would you excuse me for a minute?" he said to the gem and left before she could answer.

He followed the source of the sound, and was joined by Pearl midway there.

"Steven, that was-"

"It has to be," he said.

After all, which other gem would be called a 'brute' if not _her_.

They reached a growing crowd of gems pushed their way in. At the epicenter was Yellow Pearl — _Blondie_ , as she like to be called now—, arguing with, _who else_? Jasper.

Steven braced himself for the worse and stepped between the two.

"Hey guys. What seems to be the-AH!"

He noticed it right away. At his right was Blondie, dressed with a Marilyn Monroe wig and covered in a paint stained dress that was once white —no doubt for her newest model season with the Art Class. To his left was Jasper, with a still dripping brush in her hand.

And in the middle was something that could only nominally be called 'a portrait'.

"Oh, alright," squeaked Steven, "I-ehem... I can see the problem."

"The problem?!" shouted Blondie. "The problem is that this… this _bully_ is deliberately mocking me. I mean, look at it!"

Steven did, despite his good sense. She was right, it _was_ awful; it was like someone with no real sense of proportion or color theory had tried to make an abstract portrait. While being sleep deprived. And blind. He caught a glance of Pearl covering her mouth; her face was sick green.

"It's not that bad," said Jasper, unusually shy.

"Not that bad?!"

Blondie gave the drawing to Steven and, due to the lack of any nearby trash cans, he laid it on the ground. Front down.

"Its heinous and you know it. Am I supposed to believe you really paint _that_ bad?" said Blondie. Jasper flashed her teeth at her — _never a good sign_.

Steven looked around; the crowd was becoming unrest. The whole painting class was staring, plus the teacher —Vidalia—, Pearl, and a few bystander gems.

He also noticed when Blue Pearl —these days known as Luna— stepped forward from the crowd and put a hand on her friend shoulder.

"Maybe you should let this pass," she tried, but Blondie stuck a finger on Jasper's chest.

"I will, when this brute-"

She was cut off by Jasper grabbing her finger and pulling Blondie closer to her face.

"It's not my fault you are heinous," said Jasper, full of bile. Blondie turned red.

Steven took that as his signal to intervene. He put himself between the two of them and gently pushed Blondie away from the bigger gem. Pearl did her part and patted her shoulder as if saying 'let's go walk it out'. Reluctantly, Blondie followed her fellow pearls.

It was between them now. Steven and Jasper were face to face —as it has happened many times since she moved in to LH, three weeks ago.

Steven put his 'best friends' smile and held her by the arm. "Come on, let go talk somewhere else."

He was going to gently led her away when Jasper, not so gently, grabbed him by the wrist, holding him in place.

"Why do _I_ have to leave? She is overreacting and you know it," she said.

"Jasper, that's not the point."

"Don't patronize me, Killer."

"You hurt her feelings."

"Hmp! So now it's my fault she is a terrible model?"

 _Oh, Stars._ Steven didn't need future vision to foresee what happened next.

"Excuse ME?" yelled Blondie as she broke up of her friends' grasp and ran back at the center of the crowd.

Steven was quick enough to put a hand on her and Jasper's chest before they went to the fists.

"What did you just said?" demanded Blondie.

"You heard me, _doll_!" retorted Jasper.

The fight was rekindled in an instant. Jasper to one side, spiting insults. Blondie on the other, being held by Luna and Pearl, and demanding an apology that, Steven knew, was never going to receive.

The real troubling part, however, was the audience. The gems were all staring in disbelief; confused, worried, even scared of how the situation could end up to. Steven could felt the turmoil in their auras.

 _Doubt_. They didn't think he could fix this.

 _That's it,_ Steven decided.

He put his literal foot on the ground, sending all nearby gems to the ground, cracking the floor and releasing a wave of energy in the shape of a gust of air.

" **Would you just can it?!** " he shouted, his voice going beyond the gems form and straight to their gemstones.

He spoke in plural but was looking at Jasper.

" **You think this is a good reason to pick up a fight? You think _she_ is a worthy opponent? That this is worth your time? Look around you. You are making a scene!"**

"Steven!"

" **Not now, Pearl! I-"** he turned around and lost his voice.

Pearl was kneeling on the ground; her body acting as a shield from Blondie's cowering form. Luna was there too; using Pearl's body as coverage as she hugged her friend.

Steven came down from the anger he has lot himself into. The gems were starting to come back to their senses too. They all had wide, shocked eyes and open mouths and Steven could tell why.

His body was **pink** all over. He shook his head, driving the anger away and pushing the energy back into his gem until he recovered his normal hue. He searched for Jasper. Like a cat during a thunderstorm, she was shaking mad with impotence. Steven reached to her but she pushed him away and stood up on her own. She muttered a 'whatever' before leaving for good.

Steven's instincts told him to go follow her, but he couldn't. He wasn't in the right state of mind, and he has left half of Little Homeworld in an uncomfortable situation.

"Alright guys," he spoke; his voice carrying all the Diamond Authority he could muster without making the gems feel uneasy. "It's all cool now. Go back to your business. **Everything is fine."**

With that said, he let go of the energy accumulated, and wave after wave of healing aura was released from his gem. Steven has come to call this his _Soothing Aura_ , and the effect was immediate. The more vulnerable gems felt themselves calm and happy, smiling brightly and chatting with each other. The others —the ones with more willpower—, turned their heads around in confusion, as if awoken from a strange dream.

In any case, they all picked up their canvases, brushes and colors and carried out with their business like nothing has happened. Vidalia, being a human without gem, was not affected by the aura; but once she saw the gems all ready to go back to class, she shrugged the whole thing off.

 _Another day with the gems_ , she thought, as she went back to teaching figure sketching.

Once the class was all settled, Steven rushed out of the 'crime scene', and didn't stop until he was away from all eyes. He leaned against a wall as he wheezed, trying to regain his composure.

He had never used his aura on so many gems at once, and he felt positively drained. Besides, it's not like he had had too much practice with that power. Last time he used it, it was on Jasper, a few weeks ago, and that was a unique circumstance.

He regularized his breath but he was still shaking. He has lost control, not only of the situation, but of _himself._ In the middle of _fucking_ Little Homeworld, for Light's sake! His hands reached his head, applying pressure, trying to dry out the static in his brain.

Steven put himself together just in time to sense Pearl came over.

"Well, Luna is with Blondie, but they are both much calmer now, in no small way thanks to your…" Pearl measured her words. "'Mind tricks'"

Steven muttered something and let himself fall against the wall. Pearl cleared her throat to get his attention.

"Steven, you know I don't approve-"

"I know Pearl. But w-what did want me to do?" said Steven in a rush. Pearl gave him an understanding —almost maternal— look.

He'll never know why she was immune to the Soothing Aura, yet she can feel its effect. Too much time being Pink Diamond's right hand woman, maybe? Although if his mother had this power or not, was a mystery to both Pearl and him.

"Look, the gems are already confused and scared with all the changes going on. I couldn't let a street fight to blow up and-"

"That's not what I meant," interrupted Pearl, "I don't approve of that either, but I can understand it, in certain circumstances…" Pearl stopped; as if only now she was catching what she was saying. She shook her head. "B-but we'll talk about that later. No, I meant how you used your Pink Steven form."

He nodded but said nothing. He had no excuse, not for that at least.

"Steven, it's the fifth time in two weeks. The second one on Little Homeworld and at least the last one had no witnesses."

She knelt down next to him. "Your powers are great, Steven. And they are useful too!" she reminded him, "But if you keep losing control of them, it's only a matter of time before someone get hurt-"

"That won't happen. I promise!" said Steven loudly, and then added, calmer: "I'm fine. I just need more practice."

Pearl looked down. Her aura was shaking with doubt.

"Well… if you ever need help, or just talk," her hand squeezed Steven's shoulder. "I am always here. _We_ are always here."

Steven nodded absentmindedly. He imagined himself sitting down with the Crystal Gems and letting them know of his fear of his ever growing powers, his growing tiredness of having the weight of the gem empire on his shoulders, and his deteriorating state of mind.

At the same time, he was assaulted with an image of Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl backing up in fear, raising their weapons at Steven. Being scared of _Him_. In days like these, that scenario felt more likely than ever.

"Thanks but, as I said, I am _fine,"_ said Steven.

 _The gems can never know_ , he thought, _not until I can learn how to control my powers and Little Homeworld is a bit more settled._

Pearl was about to retort when a shadow was casted over them.

"Excuse me, Steven Universe…" said Luna as she took a short step forward. "Blondie here wanted to say something."

She moved quickly to the side, exposing Blondie, who went hard as a table. She was still wearing the paint-stained dress but she had thrown away the wig.

"Well… I just wanted to say that… I admit I could have handled that a little better," she said, earning herself a shove from Luna. " _Also_ , I might have overreacted. I apologize for my behavior."

She bowed her head in shame. Steven dismissed her with a hand wave.

"There is no need for that, I am not mad," he lied, but telling the truth was no productive whatsoever. "Just try to be patient with Jasper the next time. She still has a long way to go."

Blondie muttered a 'thank you'. They turned around, ready to leave.

"Wait," said Steven, "I wanted to apologize too. For, you know, scaring you two back there."

Blondie blushed. "Oh, _that_. It's no big deal, just a reflex."

"Indeed. It's been a while since we last saw a glimpse of Pink's power," said Luna, "it was overwhelming, to say the least."

Steven breath was cut short. He checked his hand to see if he was turning pink. He was not.

"Oh, so you knew about _that_ ," he said, trying to sound disinterested.

Blondie chuckled. "You mean about the world-shattering powers she had? Sure we did. Everyone on Homeworld, or at least everyone on the palace, knew about that."

Pearl scoffed as familiar bile grew in her chest. "Not everyone."

There was a minute or so of silence; everyone's heads were occupied with their own thoughts and problems. Steven's own issues were planet sized at this point.

"Well, it's true that she _was_ calmer by the time you came by," said Luna, "especially after… the thing with her pearl."

She was, of course, talking about Volleyball. Steven bit his lip. That was still a sore spot for all of the people gathered.

Blondie gave her friend a nasty glare. "Don't be silly. We both know the one responsible for her change was Spinel."

"Spinel?!" shouted Steven, as his body turned pink and the light **burned** inside his gem.

The two pearls took a step back; Blondie took cover behind her friend once again. Pearl held Steven by the elbow. His skin was burning hot, but she didn't let go.

"Steven," she hissed.

"'I am ok! Let me just…" Steven breathed in and out; he thought of the ocean, the waves, the beach… His hue changed back to normal.

"I am ok," he said with confidence.

He walked to the pearls, very slowly, as if approaching a scared animal. "What was that thing you said about Spinel?"

The pearls shared a look before Blondie spoke. "Well, you see… After what happened to her pearl, Spinel was gifted to Pink by the Diamonds, alongside that garden of hers."

"And whenever Pink was distressed or got into a fight with the Diamonds, they would dismiss her to the garden until she was 'fit for talking with'," added Luna.

"'Chill out' as you humans say."

Steven eyes opened wide. So there was a connection between his destructive powers and the small playful gem.

"That _is_ true," added Pearl, just as amazed by this revelation, "I remember she would turn into a fury, go to the garden, and then come back calmer." She averted Steven's gaze and blushed. "I didn't think it had to do anything with your powers. I never knew that side of your mother."

There was hurt in Pearl's voice, but Steven couldn't pay mind to it.

"Wait, hold it," he said.

"Hold what?" said Blondie.

"It's an expression," said Pearl.

"What you are saying…" proceeded Steven as if he has not been interrupted, "Is that Spinel helped my mom with…" he signaled himself, "all this?"

Both pearls nodded.

"It's impossible to know what went through Pink Diamond's mind that prompted her change" said Luna as she stared directly at Steven's eyes —did she knew what was bothering him? Is he that obvious?— "But if there is anyone that knows more about her- I mean _your_ powers, besides her pearl, that would be Spinel."

Steven brought a hand to his face. He was sweating heavily, and not from the sun. All the heat was coming from the cursed gem incrusted in his belly; the energy running circles inside it. He made a quick decision.

"Pearl, can you make sure the activities get through without problems? Also, if anyone needs anything, give them a rain check for tomorrow."

Pearl was taken back but recovered quickly. "Of course! I'll text Garnet and Amethyst to let them know and we'll split the classes between the three," she took her phone from her pocket and started texting with one hand. "You sure you don't want to take someone with you?"

Steven looked at her free hand. It was badly burnt.

"Positive," he said, "I had to do this myself."

He gave his quick goodbye to the pearls, and went on his own way. Straight to the beach house; and to the Galaxy Warp Pad.

* * *

A few minutes later, Steven was walking the hallways of Homeworld's Great Palace with a familiar gem.

"Thanks again for guiding me around, Volleyball. No matter how many times I came to Homeworld, I always find a way to get myself lost," said Steven to the gem by his side, "Also, it is ok if I call you Volleyball, right?"

"Why, of course it is, silly. It's my nickname! You gave it to me, remember? But most gems call me just Val these days," said Val as she smiled brightly at him.

Steven smiled back at her. Seeing her again and well was a relief. Her left eye was healing wonderfully, not longer appearing as a lump. The iris was still white, however, and the pupil didn't moved at all, making the impression that it was painted and not real at all.

"But you are right, Homeworld is always changing. Is a huge shift to how it was before; rigid and static," said Val with increasing enthusiasm, "Now it seems there are new changes every day! But here, let me show you."

They reached a giant blue door decorated with sculpted images of the ocean. Steven knew that every sculpted gem soldier and creature on that door was actually a sentient gem. He flinched when a gem-fish winked at him. He had suggested the diamonds to move these living statues to more 'pleasant locations' —Earth, for example—, and to not make any more of them. The second request they had complied. The first one —considering it would mean to dismantle the whole palace— not so much.

Val made a move to open the door, but Steven was faster and pushed the button.

The moment they stepped inside, he got what Val meant. Blue's palace was _ridiculously_ different than the first time he came. All around he saw gems expressing themselves; be it either painting great murals on the walls, designing _not-living_ sculptures or playing with their phones —which Steven had provided, though he never imagined they would like them so much.

There was an aura of elegance everywhere —as with all thing related to Blue—, but now there was an easiness in the air. It was beautiful; and it was moments like this that make him miss Homeworld.

And as Steven took note of the gems, they too noticed him. He was gladly greeted by the more open minded gems, while the more reserved ones simply acknowledged his presence or did a diamond salute.

He groaned. He **hated** that salute. He made sure to greet the saluting gems with a pat on the back and a 'Hey you, how are you doing?' That usually did the trick, and Steven knew that the next time he saw them, they would have lighten up.

"Wow, everybody really like you," said Val as they passed by a group of greeting lapis lazulis. "I have never such a reaction to no one. Not even the diamonds get this amount of love." She chuckled softly. "Usually they only get distant admiration, and these days, not even that."

"I am glad to hear that," he said, truthfully. "Speaking of, I have been meaning to ask you about the diamonds… It took me by surprise when you decided to go back to work for White. Sorry if I am opening an old wound-"

Val shook her head. "Not at all. In fact, it's the opposite. Working for White is really satisfying."

Steven blinked a few times. "It is?"

"Yes… I understand how much she hurt me, and she understood it too," explained Val, surprising Steven further. "Back then, she didn't know that what she did was wrong. She thought it was all for teaching Pink a lesson. We talked it over many times. She is remorseful know. I know that is not an excuse, but she is much nicer now."

Her voice dropped, as if lost in thought. "I mean, everyone deserves a second chance, right? We can all change and grow, after all. I _have_ to believe she _can_ change, because if I don't-"

She stopped walking. A tiny teardrop felt from his good eye before she caught it. Steven could feel her aura, shaking with anger and pain.

His new Aura Reading has been proven useful since day one, when he discovered it by accident. It made it easier to see what was in the gems minds and hearts and to help them. Sometimes, however, it could be overwhelming, just like a few minutes before in Little Homeworld. Or just like now.

He must have been staring to strongly, because Val smiled and made a dismissing gesture.

"Besides, we both know White is not the best at dealing with other people emotions or desires. So whenever she is in a 'moral crossway', I like to be around to…" Val made a shoving motion. "Give her a little push in the right direction. She has really come to appreciate my advice. It makes me feel useful again."

And just like that, her mood went back to joyful. Steven smiled despite himself. Val was a model Pink Gem, sweet on the outside, sour in the inside; excellent at dealing with people, and with a generally good heart. Steven didn't get why, after 8000 years, she would want to spend even _more_ time with White, but he trusted her judgment.

"Well, if the Diamonds become too much or White gives you trouble, just come to me. I am always available," said Steven, and he meant it.

Val thanked him and they resumed their march. Soon enough they reached another door, not too different from the last one, except this one had images of gems on water springs.

"And here we are," said Val, signaling the giant door, "I'll present you and leave if you don't need anything else."

"Thanks Val. It was nice talking to you," said Steven, "I am glad you are adapting well."

"Yes, Era 3 is incredible! It makes it easier to, you know, move forward," she took a hand to her still hurt eye. "And the pearls have been really helpful! Your p-I mean… Earth's Pearl has been teaching me meditation techniques and just being delightful to be around. And Luna has been teaching me about this 'meep morp' that you humans like so much."

Steven covered his smile with the back of his hand.

"And Blondie is… Blondie. But she is much more pleasant now than what I remember. Everybody is, come to think of it."

"Even Spinel?" asked Steven, and he got worried when the answer wasn't instantaneous.

Instead, Val held her hands to her chest, playing with her fingers, as do all people that have bad news they don't know how to break through.

"She is difficult to approach."

"Oh boy," hissed Steven.

"She did nothing bad!"

 _Oh boy_ , thought Steven, even bitterer. He checked Val's aura, but it didn't feel like she was lying.

"It's just… I thought that, since we had similar experiences we could find points in common. But whenever I tried to approach her, she would dismiss me, saying she had 'other things to do'." She grimaced. "Except then she would lock herself in her room and wouldn't come out until being summoned by the diamonds. Anyway, I don't think it's me," she waited for a moment, as if rethinking her own words, "I mean, she does the same with the other pearls. But I trust she has a good reason to."

 _Yeah, she better do_. Steven bit his under lip, as he does before doing something stupid.

"I'll talk to her," he said, regretting it in an instant. "I am sure it is all a misunderstanding."

Val shook her head but didn't argue with him. Steven felt his stomach churn and his shoulders tense like a lamppost. _What else could he do?_ It was Val. And be it on purpose or not, Spinel _was_ hurting her.

His gem heat up at this thought. For some reason, it was harder to Steven to completely forgive Spinel for what she has done, but he had ascribed it to the fact that they haven't talked again since then. And now, after almost a full year, he drops by to finally see her, and he finds out… _this_.

"Well, better go in and say hi," he said eagerly and pressed the button.

The door opened, and the sound of laughter and chatting filled the corridor, as a powerful aura made itself present. It was like a hurricane had hit Steven's face.

Without letting this scare him —for he knew these auras very well—, he followed Val inside, walking the stairs leading to the giant bathtub filled with boiling hot water.

And there they were; the source of the auras. The Diamonds. The most powerful of all gems and Steven could tell why. All gems had an aura, a not physical manifestation of the energy —the light— inside their gem. The Diamonds had it too, but theirs were gigantic in proportion to the aura of a gem like Val. It was almost overwhelming, and it was the reason why, even in Era 3, they were still treated with respect. Even gems that couldn't feel auras could sense the Diamond's power.

It would be more impressive if they weren't wheezing and spit-laughing like the recorded voices of the 90's TV shows.

Steven also heard a fourth laugh that he recognized, but whose owner he couldn't see. That is, until he looked up to gaze at Yellow Diamond's whole form. She was laughing loudly, trying to contain her shakes as to not drop the pink gem that was standing up on her palm.

"And then the Lapis said 'Well, that thing just flew over my head'!" shouted Spinel as she stretched her neck to be almost as tall as the Diamonds and then she recoiled it, making a spring-like motion and ending in a 'tah dah!' pose.

The diamonds burst into laughing, but White covered her mouth to hide it, as she was trying to appear above such humor. Steven didn't laugh. He heard that one before.

Val made a salute, ready to introduce Steven, but he put a hand on her shoulder.

"You might want to stay behind me. Seriously," he said and she dutifully obeyed.

Steven took a step forward —with Val following close behind— until he was at the edge of the tub. Then, he shouted.

"Hey guys!"

The diamonds froze and turned around.

"STEVEN!"

The palace foundations shook as they pushed each other while they ran from the far side of the tub. Val hid further behind Steven. The boy raised his shield.

There was a boom and a quake as the three giantesses leaned over the tub's edge to be at Steven's eye level. This was followed by a giant wave falling hard over him. When the water flowed away, Steven dismissed his shield. He was totally dry.

"Hey Steven," said the diamonds, as they stared at him like he was a statue on a trophy shelf.

"'Sup guys," Steven turned back at Val and whispered, "You ok over there?"

Val came out of his shadow. She was mostly dry, but her hair was socked and her bun was undone and blocking her face, making her look like her blue counterpart.

"Yeah, I think so," she moved the hair away from her eyes and then addressed the Head Gems. "My most Shining Diamonds. I present to you… Steven Universe."

"Yes, we saw him already, pearl," said White with annoyance.

Val leaned her head closer to her.

White blushed and, like it was something painful to do, she whispered: " _Thank-you_ , Val."

Val clapped, satisfied. White rolled her eyes and went back to her refined self.

Steven didn't pay tribute to what he has seen. _Wow, she really has White well trained… Good for her!_ hethought and silently thanked any higher Power that there was a positive influence on White's life.

"I can't believe you finally came," said Blue, breathless by the emotion.

"We didn't expect you for a few more months at least," added Yellow.

"Yeah, I know. But I was feeling a bit nostalgic. Missing the good old palace, you know…" lied Steven.

Yellow made a dissatisfied noise. "Wish I could say the same. Except for a few technological progresses, not much has happened these months. Even the Insurgent gems seem to have gone dormant." She huffed, her mind wandering to the good old times of galaxy conquering. "The only good thing this last year has been you, Spinel."

Steven blinked a few times as he looked around. "Speaking of… where is she?"

"What do you mean, she is right here, at Yellow's p-"

White was cut short when she noticed that Yellow's hand was empty. Yellow noticed it too, at the exact the same moment.

"Yellow! What did you do to Spinel!" asked White, looking around frantically.

"Why, I don't know!" Yellow patted her body, like she has just lost her favorite pen and not a whole grown gem. "She was here a second ago-"

"Wait, there she is," said Blue, pointing at the pink blob on the tub.

Spinel was face down over the water, floating freely at the hands of the waves. BONK. She hit the edge of the tub but didn't move. Steven gasped as the horror sank in.

 _Wait, but she is a gem. She doesn't have to breath_ , he realized a second later.

Yellow gently held Spinel's head between her pointing finger and thumb. "Oh quit fooling around little one. We have a visit!"

She raised her up. Spinel 'came back to life' with a series of dramatic gestures like holding her hand to her neck and pretending to drown. It was like a mime in full fuchsia.

Yellow set her on the floor and —not gently at all— smashed her with her finger. Spinel's body stretched down as she spat all the leftover water. Yellow retreated her hand and Spinel did like a sprig and resumed her usual shape, like she hasn't been turned into an accordion a second ago.

"Talking 'bout making waves, eh?" said Spinel, as she wrung her ponytails dry and shook her head like a cat, spraying water everywhere. "Noah fence guys, but I am pretty sure I ain't got a bath scheduled 'till next century."

She paid attention to the aforementioned visit. Her hair frizzled and her smile broke into pieces once she laid her eyes on Steven.

And he, in turn, was shocked too. He came to Homeworld to see the Spinel he knew; the one that was all macabre grins and spiral eyes hiding a terrible trauma. The one who has made herself a guest into his nightmares, when he dreamt himself on top of that injector, being held over the void. The one that tried to kill him.

But that Spinel was nowhere to be seen. Instead, he was looking at Pink Diamond's Spinel. This one was all pink and pretty as she could be and had heart ponytails. All her edges were soft and the crying marks on her cheeks were gone. The inverted heart gemstone on her chest was the only telling sign of her true self.

 _That_ , and the absolute look of dread on her face. Like someone she has cut open and buried away has appeared one year later knocking at her door.

_Oh, wait…_

"Look Spinel, Steven has come to visit. Isn't that great?" said Yellow.

"You too meet each other already, right?" said Blue.

Spinel made not a move or sound. Steven offered a shy smile and shrug. She reacted to this by smiling back.

"Why, of course I know him!" cheered Spinel, "Me and Stevie go waaay back! He is da one who found me in the Garden, after all."

Steven bit the inside of his cheek. _So the Diamonds don't know about the whole 'soil the Earth' thing, uh? Figured it so._

Spinel stretched her arms and entangled them, several times, around Steven's body, all without even moving her feet. It was a sort of 'contactless hug'.

"Hey there Stevie," she beamed, but her anxiety broke thought the façade, "How's my… heh, my ol' best friend doing?"

"I am fine, really," answered Steven, "How are you holding up? You seem different"

"Oh, I feel different. I feel great!"

She untangled her arms, which recoiled back to its usual size with a 'reeling in' sound.

"Yeah, you look... fine. New form?"

"Heh… more like 'ol' form'."

The conversation didn't go further than that. Val made her presence known, showing a soft smile and a 'hi'. Spinel's answer was to look away and mutter a soulless 'hey'. Val's mood dropped immediately.

As for Steven, he was torn apart. He wanted to help Val — _and he will_ —, and he still had unfinished business with Spinel —not to mention the whole 'Pink Steven' thing he still had to figure out. But he had come to Homeworld expecting to see the other Spinel. The one that poisoned **his** planet, attacked **his** friends and had almost **killed** him.

This Spinel was cute as a bunny and twice as harmless. In fact, without the mark of her trauma present, Steven could see her pain more clearly. In her eyes, her posture. The pathetic flickering of her aura. She was hurt. And Steven found out he didn't have it in him to be mad at her now.

The sound of a soft moan brought him back from his pensive state.

"Please forgive me," whined Blue, holding a hand to her chest. "It's just… I'm overwhelmed, that's all. We have Spinel and Volleyball, and now even Steven is here with us. They all were part of Pink in their own way. She may be gone… but her son and her best friends are still here! We are so blessed."

The diamonds all agree to this, unaware that he air has turned dense as beeswax.

Spinel looked down and held her arms to the side, still as a statue. Val held her hands to her chest and played with her fingers. Steven was breathing in and out, loudly.

 _The ocean, Steven. Think of the ocean_.

"I am glad that you mention that," said Steven, trying to sound calm, "because I came all the way here for Spinel."

The mentioned gem jumped in place. _She_ is _like a bunny!_

"Is that true?" asked White.

"It is." Steven closed the gap between him and Spinel. He smiled not too much and showed his open palms to express he was no threat to her. "I was thinking… I mean, me and Val were thinking we could have a 'Pink gems reunion'. You know, only for the gems formerly owned by Pink Diamond." Spinel gave him a dubious look. "Uh, right Val?"

Steven gave Val a pleading look; his eyes were saying 'help me out with this'.

"Why, yes! That's exactly what we had in mind," she said with assurance and then addressed the diamonds. "We have been planning this for weeks now, but we couldn't say anything as not to ruin the surprise of Steven's return."

The diamonds looked intrigued by this last comment, even thought her auras revealed doubt. _Damn, Val was smart_. Too much for her own good, perhaps, but who is Steven to judge? In any case, he was jealous.

If he could have sweet talked someone that well when he was 14, his problems would have been solved twice as fast.

"Anyway, if you guys don't need us, I'll just grab Spinel and go."

Steven held both Val's and Spinel's hands in his; the startled gem was even more surprised. They made a single step down when a giant fist smashed the edge of the tub, breaking the marble in pieces.

"What?!"

"You can't be serious!"

"But Steven, you just came here…"

"You can't leave us now, you must stay!"

"Why?" said Steven flatly.

The diamonds were stunned by that bold statement. White, ever the leader, tensed her shoulders.

" **You ask why?"** she said, her voice reverberating and her gem glowing nuclear. She was now the White that has created an empire out of dust. " **There is a very good reason why, young man!** "

The three small creatures cowered, but Steven held his ground. Seeing him unfazed by her power, White's light banished.

" **And** … Blue here will explain it," she said, practically shoving her fellow diamond at the front.

"I will?" asked Blue. White gave her a 'do it or you will be shattered into dust' look. "I mean, yes I will! Listen to me, Steven."

"I'm listening."

"Right. Well it's… uh… you see Steven… we… you must…" Steven made an effort not to laugh. It was so cute watch Blue fumble with her words and playing with her fingers like a girl at the principal's office.

"Y-Yellow will explain it!" she shouted and pointed at her.

"What?!" exclaimed her fellow diamond. She huffed. "Fine, I'll take it from here, as usual." She looked down at Steven, full of resolution.

Steven winked at her. Yellow blushed but didn't drop her valiant façade.

"You see Steven, you can't leave because…" she stopped, going through the same mental block Blue had.

She suddenly smiled full of confidence

"Well, you obviously can't leave before you give us your report."

"My… report…"

"Yes!" shouted Yellow, raising a fist in the sky. "You understand that your colony is unprecedented in all aspects. We must know all the details about your 'leadership-free' gem colony, and if there has been an advance on your gem-organic integration project. Not to mention your reports have been lacking and —dare I say— too sparse these last months. SO, as far as we are concerned, you can't leave this place until you explain yourself to us fully."

She crossed her arms, like a mother talking to a disrespectful child. The other diamonds were in awe.

"Besides, the water's temperature is perfect," she added. "It would be a shame to waste it."

This profound speech was followed by the admiration of the other diamonds.

"That's brilliant Yellow! In fact, you can have your 'Pink Reunion' here!" said Blue. "We were part of Pink's life too, after all!"

"Well said, Blue! You too, Yellow!" cheered White. "See Steven? I told you there was a reason why **I** needed you here."

The diamonds took turns congratulating each other as much as trying to claim the credit from the idea.

Steven shared a look with her fellow pink gems. Or one should say 'red gems' for they had red faces and crying eyes. The three of them exploded in laughter. The diamonds were great and powerful in many ways, but talking down to Steven was not one. After all, 'smooth-talking' is not a skill you develop when you are used to everyone following your every command.

"T-the big and terrible Diamonds, ladies. They might invade your world, if they can decide where to land first," joked Steven, earning more laughing from the gems.

"I-it's really s-surprising they went as far as they did conquering the galaxy," said Val.

"Pretty sure they were just trying to outdo each other for da 'Overlord of the Year' award," said Spinel in a hush.

Val giggled. "'Overlord of the Year'? I don't think that's a real thing"

"Why, ya don't know that."

Steven watched the small talk that had ensued between the gems and he was livid. _This_. This here is what made him miss Homeworld. Moments like this made him relieve his days as 'trainee diamond'. Over the two years he spent dismantling the empire, he alternated between living on Beach City and here, and while he would choose the Earth any day, it was hard not to miss Homeworld.

It was a part of him, too.

"Well, what do you say Steven? You obviously can't leave yet," said White, extending her arms, holding Blue and Yellow close to her.

Val tapped Steven's shoulder. "Please, could just humor them for a while?" she whispered, "If you leave now, they'll be devastated."

'Devastated' in this context meant 'a pain to be around'. Whenever the diamonds where in a foul mood, whoever was closest usually paid the price. In this case, the gems whose hands he was still holding.

He let go of their friends' hands. "Alright, alright. You guys got me. We should catch up."

"Oh, excellent! That is wonderful to hear," said White.

"It will be like old times, when you used to live here," said Blue dreamingly.

White knelt to be eye level with Steven again. She laid her open hand on the ground, inviting.

Steven was about to step on, when he stopped to look at Val.

"Well, what are you waiting for, hop in," he said.

Val blinked a few times. She hasn't believed Blue's offer was serious. She looked at White, waiting for her approval. The diamond nodded once.

Her face shine with happiness, and so did her aura. She made a move to get into the hand, but was swiftly blocked by a pink blur.

"No!" yelled Spinel as Val felt on the ground with a loud thud.

Steven rushed to Val and knelt next to her. She was fine but shocked, just like all the others nearby. White retreated her hand and took a defensive stand, as did the other diamonds.

"Why not?" asked White; her face made of ice and blinding light.

Spinel bit her fingers, chewing them like they were gum, as she laid under the diamond's shadow. Her heart buns were now hiding behind her head, giving her the look of a distressed animal. Her eyes opened wide suddenly, as if she has figured the solution to a problem.

"Because it would be unfair, of course!" she said.

_What?_

"Unfair?" repeated Yellow. "To whom?"

"To her," Spinel pointed a finger at Val.

That only increased the general confusion of the room.

"Think about it for a sec," said Spinel as she turned her legs into a spring and slingshot herself into the air.

It looked like a random action, but she made a perfect arc and headed into the right place to be catch by Yellow's hand.

"Just consider, my Diamonds, that you guys are about to have a very serious discussion and —although I am sure Val is confidential 'nuff—, what interest it is to her what you are gonna discuss?"

Spinel jumped again, making a long arc and a mortal roll in the air before landing on Blue's shoulder.

"And may I remind you that this is Era 3?" said Spinel and move like a flash to the other shoulder. "It's an era of freedom. Where every gem can be what they want, everybody can feel whatever their melon heart tells them, and every gem gets _free_ _time_."

She made a mortal jump backwards, like a bird rising from the ground, and she head-landed into White's hair.

The head diamond looked up as Spinel's head sprouted out of her mane, close enough to touch the diamond's gem.

"Now, _me_ , I'll love to skedaddle my way outta 'ere. But since Steven himself said he came all da way to Homeworld to see wittle ol' me, I have to stay. But surely you guys wouldn't force Val to sit through your boring meeting? Mmm?"

Steven rolled his eyes. But soon enough the diamond's nodded their heads; Spinel's words having worked like magic inside their heads.

"Mm, you might be right, Starlight" said White.

"It's true. We wouldn't want anybody to do anything they don't want. That's not our way anymore," said Blue.

Yellow hummed in approval. She was not convinced, but she was not about to disobey a decision made by her fellow diamonds.

"Very well then, it is decided," said White, "Val, you are free to go and do… whatever it is that you do in your free time. You are dismissed for the rest of the evening."

"What? No, no, hold on, time out," shouted Steven, "I said I wanted to speak with _both_ Spinel _and_ Val, and she doesn't have to leave if-"

A hand on his shoulder muted him for good.

"It's fine," said Val, with a sad smile.

Steven looked at her aura. She was not alright.

"I don't want to be… where I am not wanted," she said that last part in barely a whisper.

Val saluted the diamonds and walked the stairs down. Nobody spoke until they heard the door open and close.

Steven clenched his teeth so much he thought he was gonna bleed. He had to look at his hands to make sure he wasn't pink, because _he sure as hell_ felt like turning now.

"Well, since everything's alright now…" said White, with a fleeting trace of regret in her voice. It soon enough banished as she smiled and extended her hand, once again, to Steven. "Come in now, we have much to discuss."

Steven wanted to complain. He wanted to scream and yell and explain time and time again why that thing they did was **rude** as fuck.

But he was in no position to talk right now, not with his anger boiling, and his powers out of control, and the light in his gem growing and **burning**.

So he did as he was told and jumped into White's massive hand. She raised him to her face level. Her light could blind at this distance, but not Steven. Soon enough the diamonds started to discuss the matters of the colony, with Steven answering short questions here and there.

His attention, however, was in the small pink dot entangled on White's hair. Spinel was playing with one of White's locks, pretending to not pay attention —for Steven knew she was listening to every word. Their glances crossed and Spinel looked away, biting her under lip.

Her aura was shrinking down. _Shame_ , it's what she was feeling.

_This is gonna be harder than I thought…_

Steven huffed and sat on White's palm, taking his jacket off in the process.

He was not going home anytime soon.


	2. Pink as me

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Another chapter! Yeaaah!
> 
> Please i beg that you guys be patient with the me regarding publishing times. I am writing two long fics and a one-shot, not to mention i have been job-hunting like crazy. One chapter each month is as far as i can go.
> 
> This chapter and the next one are more characterization than anything else, but just wait, for there are many more interesting thing to come!
> 
> With that said, i hope you like it!

The top-secret council with the Diamonds quickly devolved into a messy family meeting. Steven's report was quick and efficient —a befitting Diamond's way; only a few questions were made here and there, mostly about Earth concepts the Diamonds didn't get; what is a school? What does an Earth job involve? Is it absolutely necessary to own a cell phone?

Once he was done, the Diamonds were eager to share their own progress of the last year.

Yellow has been focusing most of her resources on the technological advancement of the _not-quite_ empire, with all her free time being spent on the new arena she has built, where gems could fight for sport and not war.

Blue _loved_ the concept of meep morps, and had enlisted a group of gems of various castes to help her design updates for the old-fashioned temples and spires. Once they had refined this new wave of art and architecture, they will travel to the former colonies to educate the locals about it.

White's life was quieter these days. Even with the empire dismantled, she was still revered; a sort of figurehead who was sometimes called from the former colonies to request advice, give report to or, —even rarer— ask for blessing. Most colonies liked the idea of freedom, but they still think of White as, if not a ruler, at least an honored creature. A Gem amongst gems.

It was irremediable. After all, she was the closer thing the gems had to a god. Although, if there was place for religion in the Gemkind's unconscious mind was a controversial topic

In any case, White did come out of her Head-Ship often these days, which was good. Mostly to reprimand Yellow and Blue when they did something she deemed 'wrong', though, _which was bad_. However, she had Val now, and she could be a much needed positive influence in White's life. Steven imagined Val sitting on White's shoulder, shaking her head at the Head-Diamond latest outburst. This thought made him smile.

In general, everything was good news! The Diamond's still had their issues for sure, but they had grown so much it was almost scary. Steven still had to talk to them about their social skills, but that was a headache for another day.

Spinel was a different story. She had abandoned White's neck to go back to Yellow's shoulder and, while the Diamond's chatted and laughed, Spinel hid behind Yellow's neck, coming out to add an occasional off-hand comment, trying —and failing— to insert herself into the conversation.

_Now, how can I reach up to you?_ Steven asked himself.

He searched for her gaze, but Spinel was too interested in the vapor coming from the boiling bath water _._

"What about you, Spinel?" said Steven, interrupting Yellow's speech about the new gravity motors of the ships. "What have you been up to?"

"Me?" yelped Spinel, her neck stretching out to peep at Steven, "W-why do you ask? What could I been up to? I’m just my usual wittle ol' me, hehe…"

Steven shook his head. _She is not slick at all…_

"Little one, I think what Steven means to say is if you have tried out any new 'activity' yet," said Yellow.

"Oh! Well, no, but you guys know I have been busy, right? I mean I have been practicing my dance moves and my juggling. You can never be good 'nuff at jugglin', that's what I say. In fact, you guys want to see sum?"

Before anyone could answer, Spinel propelled herself from Yellow's shoulder, made a mortal flip in the air, and landed on White's palm, next to Steven. Specifically, she had landed on top of Steven's jacket and shirt —which he had disposed off due to how hot it was in the bath— and was stepping on it.

Spinel wasted no time; her gem lighted up as she took out a pink sphere. It was so perfectly round it was upsetting.

"I can start out with three but work myself up to seven o'them. Wanna see?"

Spinel played with the ball, throwing it up in the air, grabbing it when it fell, then tossing it to the other hand and throwing it back up, over and over again. It reminded Steven of the idle animation of a videogame.

The Diamonds were quiet and contemplative for a second, not liking Spinel's evasive attitude.

"Thanks Spinel, but no," said Yellow firmly. Spinel held the ball to her chest. "I think Steven wanted to know how you use your spare time."

"Yes. What do you do when you 'hang out' —I think I said it right— with your friends?" said Blue.

Spinel swiped her finger over the ball, making it chirp. "I thought you guys were my friends."

"Of course we are!" said White, matter-of-factly, "but what about your _other_ friends?"

There was a loud silence, broke only by the squealing of the ball under Spinel's fingers. Steven could tell the Diamonds' were getting impatient; they didn't like to be ignored.

"I think Spinel just didn't have time to make new friends yet," said Steven, rushing to save her.

Spinel nodded at this.

"If that's the problem then you can have more time for yourself," said Blue, followed by a gasp, "Oh! You can spend time with my court. Imagine the sculptures they could carve of someone of your dynamic shape."

"I-er… yeah, I don't know 'bout that…"

"Hmp! You are right Spinel. It would be a waste of talent," said Yellow, raising a fist in the air. "You must go into the arena! The new obstacle course would be no match for your athletic prowess!"

"Mmm… may-beee? I-I am not sure…"

"Or if you want," said White, "you could spent time with Val."

The sphere escaped Spinel's grasp and, after a few futile attempts to catch it, it finally fell from her hands. Spinel let out a quiet, pathetic _nooo_ as she saw the ball crash into the water. Steven held his lips tight shut. That would have been funny if it wasn't so sad.

"I… beg your pardon?"

Blue was already clapping her hands with enthusiasm. "White, that's a wonderful idea!"

"Guys. No, guys. That-that's a terrible idea" said Spinel.

"Of course it is, Blue!" said White, ignoring Spinel’s protests, "They have so much in common. They are both pink gems, they were Pink's friends, and they were both abandoned by her. It's perfect!"

"That's not perfect! That's, like, the opposite of perfect! Its below-zero-perfect! It's an irrational numbuh! Tell them, Yellow!"

"The circumstances of their abandonment are different, White," said Yellow.

"Yes! Yes that's exactly-"

"Oh, those are just details, my dear," said White.

"You guys are not even listening," cried Spinel, utterly miserable.

"I know they haven't had time to 'hang out' as one would say…"

"I could be saying anything right now and you guys wouldn't listen…"

"But I am sure once they get to it, they would be inseparable rascals!"

"I infested Homeworld with lice. I am the one that broke the statue last week. You guys' butts look gigantic from this angle…"

Yellow scratched her chin. "You may be right, White."

"Yellow, dear, have I ever not been right?" White raised her free hand in the air, in her usual commanding pose.

The other Diamonds laughed at the irony of White's words and her theatrical way of being.

Meanwhile, Spinel has dropped to her knees and hid her face on her hands; she was whining, but not yet crying. Many flashbacks of Steven's own annoyance at the Diamonds raced through his mind.

He knelt next to her and put a hand on her back.

"Don't even bother. It's impossible to get their attention when they get like that."

Spinel's neck made like a corkscrew and turned around 180º degrees. Her expression was fierce.

"YES, I know how they can get. I _have_ been living with 'em for a whole year now, _Steven_."

Steven took his hand off her. _Alright, geez!_ He stood up and looked the other way.

Once the Diamonds were done enlarging each other's heads, White raised her occupied hand closer to her face. At this distance, her aura was blinding; flowing out of her gem like a torrent. Were Steven not standing on her very physical hand, he would have thought White was just light given shape, without any real mass.

"What do you say, Starlight? Didn't we had the best idea?" asked White, showing her sparkling teeth.

"I-I don't know ‘bout that White..." said Spinel, dodging her gaze.

White blinked a few times. It was like a pair of flickering stars. "You… don't know?"

The other diamonds came into view, standing at each side of White, looking down at the smaller gems and, more specifically, at Spinel. She hugged herself and tried to stand as tall as possible.

“I mean I-it is a great idea, it's just…” she looked around as if trying to find the answer in the roof, the floor, the air itself. “I... You guys know I am very busy. It takes time and effort to keep my act top notch."

She offered a weak smile. "Also, you guys would miss me if I am away for too long, right?”

Silence. The Diamonds looked at each other with quizzical looks.

Spinel's smile banished. "Right… guys?"

It was Blue who spoke first, her head closer to the tiny gem: "Spinel, my dear, are you feeling alright? You seem distressed."

Spinel opened her mouth to speak, but no sound came out. Her hair was now frizzled out and her heart buns had loose all shape. She went quiet, resuming the 'broken doll' form she has taken when the Diamonds mentioned Pink a while ago. Her aura was so entangled in itself it looked like a yarn ball.

_Alright, that should do_ , thought Steven. _That's enough suffering for a day_.

He patted Spinel's shoulder and held his hand there.

"You know guys? I think Spinel's just done for today." He looked down at Spinel. She was beyond confused. "And I am _sure_ she would appreciate some much needed ' _her'_ time in _her_ room."

Steven winked at her. Spinel mouth made like an O then she nodded fervently.

Yellow scoffed. "Ha! I found that hard to believe. Her body is made of the most flexi-dynamic material ever constructed —the same one we use to make the cables that hold our bridges and ships together. Not to mention her gem was fabricated with the combined nutrients of a whole planetoid. A Kindergarten of one. She is truly a marvel of gem engineering," Yellow sighed, "the product of another era."

Spinel tensed a bit; Steven tightened the grip on her shoulder.

"She may be all of that that you say, but we all need time for ourselves. It's the right of every gem now," said Steven in a scolding tone. "Also, I was gonna head to my room, so I can drop her on my way."

"But you are not leaving already, are you?" asked White.

"Not at all. I just… need to lie down for a while," he smiled awkwardly; "I am still human, remember? Made of squishy meat, am I right?"

Blue hummed. "Steven's right. We _all_ must leave already. There is a report of the colonies of the outer rim that still needs my attention," she raised her hands, showing how much her blue color has faded from her skin. "Also, if I stay in the tub longer any longer, my form might dissolve into the water."

"Very well," said Yellow, as she stretched her arms and neck, "I might as well go supervise the installation of that new battle cruise motor." She pointed a finger at Steven. "But we _must_ meet again before you leave."

"Yes ma'am!"

Yellow's finger caressed his curls. "Good boy."

Steven gulped. He knew Yellow meant no harm to him, but she was still the second most demanding Diamond.

"Oh, I had another bright idea," said White, the most demanding Diamond, as she stood up. Steven and Spinel held to each other to not fall out of her giant hand. "We shall host one of those —what you call them? — 'family dinners!'"

"But White, don't you remember? We closed off the kitchen when Steven moved out," said Blue.

“Oh… I guess you are right,” said White as her face turned a shade of green. “The odors that came from _that_ place…”

"Bah, the peridots under my command can have it open in no time —with an added ventilation system if you will It, White—," said Yellow. "What we must discuss is what foods we should serve."

"Yes! It must be a nutritive meal, fit for Steven's organic needs…"

And so the mighty Diamonds went down a tangent, discussing what food would be best for Steven and how they shall decorate the ballroom for the occasion —even if it was just the four of them.

_They are gonna be at this for a while,_ thought Steven _. Gotta leave now or never._

He made a head tilt to Spinel, which she understood immediately. She stretched her hands and picked Stevens clothes, while her other hand made circles around Steven's waist. Steven surrounded her waist with an arm and, when White was the most distracted, they jumped.

The descent was quick but the landing was soft as a step, thanks to Steven's levitation. They looked back to see the Diamonds had stood up, splashing water everywhere, still distracted with the dinner preparations.

Steven and Spinel shared a silent look and skedaddled stairs down, hand in hand, dodging the water puddles and jumping the obstacles. They didn't stop until they had left the bath house and the door closed behind them. They walked away from the noise of the Diamond's arguing, laughing all the way of the silliness of it all.

* * *

If the trip through Blue's palace made Steven nostalgic about Homeworld, the walk around Pink's former palace had done nothing but awoke his sleeping fantasies of blowing the whole place to the ground.

It wasn't even because of the worn-out murals, showing corroded images of Pink Diamond — _mom_ , Steven reminded himself. It wasn't even about all the statues, fountains and decorative tiles that made the walls, each one of them a long-gone dormant gem that will never awake.

No, the worst part was the silence. It wasn't like the common echo he could find in any room on Earth, it was something he had never experience before. What he was hearing now was the emptiness of a cemetery; and that's where he was now. His mom might not be buried here, but for all matters and purposes, this place was Pink's Tomb. Steven thanked the Light for having Spinel to make him company.

The squeaking of her shoes was oddly relaxing.

"Listen, I should probably thank you for what you did back there," said Spinel as they went deeper into the palace. "The D's were getting, heh, a tad too chummy for my taste. Oh, and sorry ‘bout your shirt."

They were walking hand in hand. The physical closeness was weird but not unpleasant. Steven’s shirt, by the way, was fine. Just a bit wrinkled for having been stepped on.

"I have seven more of them, don’t worry about it. Or about the Diamonds,” said Steven. “I know they have good intentions, but they still need to learn a thing or two about social cues."

Spinel chuckled. "A thing or two? Better go back to 101 with 'em."

"Heh, I might."

They stopped talking after that. There was a semblance of calm around them, now that Spinel was more at ease. Feeling her aura shine up had lifted Steven's mood, too.

Soon enough they had reach Pink Diamond's chamber. In other words, Steven's room for when he was visiting Homeworld.

"And here we are. ‘Ye olde place!'" announced Spinel. "That's human for 'room sweet room'."

"I'm… pretty sure it's not."

"Hehe, it is so!"

Steven raised his hands, giving up.

Spinel pressed the button and they both went inside. A sudden nostalgia sucker punched Steven, making him feel weak for a second. He hasn't had the experiences that Connie —or other human children— had; with all the times she had moved from one house to another. Steven has only ever had two homes: Beach City and Homeworld, and even thought he only lived in the Palace briefly, Pink’s chambers felt like his 'childhood bedroom' even more than his actual bedroom ever did.

Steven has expected Spinel to leave the room once they get there. He didn't mind her presence, it just felt logical.

Not only she didn't leave, she made herself comfortable by jumping backwards on the bed. The semi-gelatinous elastic mattress made like a water bed and swayed under her weight.

"So, what are ya waiting for? Make yourself at home," she stretched her whole body, covering most of the king-sized bed.

Come to think of it, why was there a bed? The room was usually empty when he wasn't around. On a second look, Steven noticed there were also a table and a chair at the farthest wall. He walked towards it, making the floor squeak. He had stepped on a sort of bouncy ball. The floor was all but littered with all sorts of trash like that.

Steven picked up the ball, watching his own confused face on the reflective surface of the sphere.

_Wait a minute…_

"Spinel… do you live here?"

She giggled, as if Steven has said a bad joke. "Yeah, no duh! If I didn't, why would all my toys be all around? Toss it over."

Steven threw the ball directly at her and she hit it with a volleyball motion, sending it flying into the air. When it felt, she caught it and proceed to play 'throw and catch' with it, with both hands and legs. It was like a kitten and a ball of yarn.

Steven looked back at the trash on the floor, trying to make out some of the stuff there.

There were hula loops of various sizes, dolls representing different gems, dancing sticks, ribbons, a giant plastic mallet, and many, many balls; everything organized into tall piles. _Toys_ , she had said, but it looked more like stuff made to entertain.

"But you know there are no other gems in the palace, right?" said Steven, "as in… never."

"Oh geez. And here it thought I was surrounded by invisible judgmental agates."

Spinel threw the ball so high it made BONK on the ceiling. Steven suddenly felt very uncomfortable in his own skin.

"What I mean to say is… Why are you, of all the gems, living in Pink's palace alone?"

Spinel caught the ball in her hands.

"What are you implyin', uh?" she sat on the bed. "That somehow, the overwhelming loneliness and the perpetual silence, combined with living in the home of the gem that left me waiting in a garden for _six thousand years_ —which is what ignited my spiral into madness in the first place—, would be detrimental for the health of someone with my particular brand of trauma?"

Steven's mouth fell open. "...yes?"

"Not at all."

Spinel went back to her tossing game like she hasn't just dropped some high level Freud on Steven's head.

_At least she is self aware, that's something, right?_

"I thought Val would live in the palace too, all things considered," Steven waited for a reaction. There was none. "But I suppose she lives in White's place now."

"Yup."

Steven felt like suffocating now. He touched his face and, confirmed _,_ he was sweating like a fake witness, even thought his jacket was tied around his waist. This shouldn't be _this_ difficult, for Light's sake! Why does he keep feeling like a stranger in his own… in his mother's house?

Spinel tossed the ball aside, making it bounce around the floor.

"Besides, I don't live exactly ‘alone’" she leaned against the wall and hit it one, two, three times. "Wakey, bakey, Spinekey!"

There was a big rustle all around, as if the walls itself where moving. Steven smiled and braced himself for what was about to come.

A small square window opened on the wall, and a bunch of tiny heads peeked from inside; the pebbles jumped from the platform inside the wall and landed on Spinel's head and shoulders.

"Spin's here!" cheered one, and the feeling was general for all of them. "Spin's here, everyone come out."

And just like that, the room was soon invaded by the tiny creepers; their windows opening on the walls and floor. They raced each other to the bed and climbed their way out, surrounding Spinel by all corners. She was positively beaming.

_At least the little buggers like her_ , thought Steven and came to the realization that if they did, she must be being nice with them.

Spinel settled on the bed, legs crossed, giving room for the pebbles to sit on and around her.

"We missed you, Spin," said a pebble.

"Did you play with the big Diamonds today?" said another.

"Oh, ho, ho, did I?" said Spinel, swelling with pride, "You guys wouldn't believe it. I showed Yellow that swingin’ trick —the one I practiced with the bars you guys made—, and she was eatin’ it!"

Steven watched the scene, content with how Spinel's aura was now matching her happy face. He wasn't going to be the one to change that.

_Oh well… I still have to stay for the dinner_ , _so I might as well hang out for a while,_ " he thought. " _I can’t stay overnight, though... If the Diamonds insist, I'll just call Pearl and pretend an emergency to leave early. Yeah! That should do it! Now I just hope the Peridots' cooking has improved since last time._

Feeling satisfied with his plan, and with nothing to do but wait, Steven looked around for a place to rest. The chair looked comfy enough.

He hung his jack on the back then grabbed the chair, intending to drag it closer to the bed. Instead, he felt to the ground once he tried to pull it.

_Right_ ; it was stuck in place, like everything the pebbles made.

He sat up, running circles with his hand over his left butt cheek. A noise at his side caught his attention and he saw a window open on the floor. There was a tiny spiral staircase inside, and climbing it up was the cutest, tiniest pebble Steven has ever seen. He had a pair goggles on his head, and they were too big for his eyes!

Steven squealed like a teenage girl. If it were any cuter, he would consider eating it —and nonetheless, he was still tempted to.

The goggles pebble walked past Steven, ignoring his presence. He was stopped, however, when a giant hand stood in his way. BOOP made the pebble when he hit the wall of flesh.

"Aww. Ain't you the cutest little thing in the house?" said Steven using his baby voice.

The pebble turned around and took his goggles out to see him better.

"Hey little dude. Think you can make me a chair with wheels?"

The goggles felt on the floor.

"STEVEN'S HERE!"

The reaction was instant and the same as with the Diamonds. The pebbles jumped out of their nest in Spinel's lap and made a run towards Steven, and soon enough he had them at his feet, scratching his legs while they climbed him like a mountain.

"Ok guys I-yeah I missed you guys too just… Can you guys please stop-Ouch! Stop climbing me and just-ok, alright I-I'll lie down just stop climbing me."

Steven contemplated about his life and how he has become Gulliver, laying on the floor with two dozen or so of tiny creepers jumping happily over him and prying into his pockets.

"Hey is that-is that my phone?" he protested as a pebble took his phone out his pocket, "Please be careful with that guys, it's very delicate and I don't think you-"

His whining was in vain; the pebble was all too entertained, taking pics of another pebble and applying filters to it.

"Never mind."

From his spot as a meat carpet, Steven looked up for Spinel. Her ponytails had lost all form and her aura was dimmer.

"Uh, guys?" said Spinel shyly, "Don't you want to hear about my day, or cuddle a bit or something?"

There was no response, and Spinel's aura shined darker as her face turned somber.

_Steven, you are an idiot_ , Steven told himself.

This wasn't his fault, _in theory_ , but he should have seen it coming. The pebbles always had a soft spot for him, as they did for his mom.

He emptied his head of all thoughts and focused on doing the same with his body. Soon enough he was carefully elevating himself over the ground. Not much though; barely enough to turn around and put both feet on the floor. In this vertical position it was easier to get the pebbles out of him, since most of them felt down by the sudden motion and crashed on the floor —they weren't hurt or even upset by this at all.

Steven gave them the important task to take care of his stuff, and 'it was imperative that they don't disturb him or Spinel'. The pebbles accepted and, as fast as usual, fabricated a cradle-like structure from the material of the floor. Then they collected Steven's phone, keys, wallet, and everything else they could get out of him and they put it all on the cradle, on top of his jacket. It looked like a mix between a shrine for Steven and a bird's nest.

_As long as they don't text my friends at Earth, this should be fine_.

Free to do as he wants, he approached Spinel. Quietly, as if she were a wild hare. Or a dire wolf.

"So…" Steven made a motion to sit on the bed but decided against it at last second. "The pebbles are quite something, uh."

"Traitors, is what they are. Traitors the whole o'them!" growled Spinel, "It would be 'off with their heads' if I had a guillotine that small."

Steven's hand went to his neck by instinct. He was having a hard time merging the poison in Spinel's voice with the cuteness of her new —old— form. Almost as much as he was pondering how did she know what a guillotine is.

"They just missed me, that's all," he said.

"Mmm, that's happening an awful lot these days."

Steven breathed in. He would have to approach the subject with care. He clapped his hands once, assuming his diplomatic persona.

"You know? I am actually glad you live here now."

Spinel's eyes opened wide. "Uh? For real?"

"Yep. Because this place was abandoned before you came. I only use this room every once in a while," Steven smiled with confidence, "plus, I think the pebbles appreciate your company."

Spinel played with her buns, stylizing them back into shape. "They _are_ quite the little fellas, uh?"

_Jackpot!_

"Besides, I like that we have some privacy. I've been meaning to talk to you."

"Whaaaat," Spinel brought a hand to her gem, "Ya mean you didn't came all the way here to have fun times with your ol' pal Spinel?"

"Well-"

"Hehe, just messing with ya. I already figured it so."

Spinel crawled to the corner of the bed, picking her pillow on her way there and hugging it to her chest. Steven sat at the opposite end.

It hit him that he was sitting on his bed, but it wasn't _his_ bed anymore. It was his bedroom, but not anymore. Steven felt like he has walked on Homeworld for the first time. It was surreal.

"So, what's been eating ya?" asked Spinel.

Steven told her about his growing powers, how they have been getting out of hand and how scared he was of himself now. Of losing control. He even told her about the fight with Jasper and the incident that morning on Little Homeworld. He didn't mean to open up to Spinel that much but he couldn't stop once he started. It was like the Jasper situation all over again; the distance between them made talking easier. Natural.

Throughout the middle of his rambling, Steven saw Spinel caressing the surface of her gem with her fingers.

"You're talking about Pink's destructive powers. You got them," she said once Steven was done.

"Yes!" he shouted, "Its… it's the shockwaves of energy, and the aura reading, t-the psychic ghost projection, the telekinesis, the power to-to freaking _kill_ things instead of giving life and that weird light coming from my gem. It's like an explosion waiting to come out!"

Steven took a moment to exhale all his pent up anger.

"See, I knew I was right coming to you. Nobody knows anything about mom's power, except the life-giving tears and stuff. But you do! And I need your help. I need to know everything about… Spinel?"

But Spinel was already up and pacing across the room.

"Spinel, is something wrong or-"

"Here it is!" Spinel picked something from a pile of toys and held it up like trophy.

It was a monocycle. Where she got it from, it was a mystery. There was tag with a name on the side but Steven couldn't make out what it said.

"Want to see how long I can ride this until I fall _hard_?" said Spinel, stretching the last word.

"Er… not thanks? I thought we were in the middle of something."

"Yeaaah… But we don't need to disclose everything right now, do we?"

"Why not?"

"Humor me for a second, alright?" said Spinel, hands on her waist, "Cause you said —I am just paraphrasin' here—, 'I am glad you live here now', right?"

"Yeah."

"This means that this is my room now, and you, Steven Universe, are the guest."

Steven shrugged. "So?"

Spinel laughed, sweet as cotton candy. "Well, it means that it is my duty, as your host, to entertain you!" She straightened her back in a business posture. "And I take my duty very seriously, mister!"

Steven suppressed a laugh. _That's what this is all about?_

"There is no need for that, Spinel. _Really_ ," he said, holding his hands up.

Spinel showed a tense smile. "Not a fan of the wheel? No problemo!"

She threw the monocycle across the room, breaking a corner of the table in the process. Then she stretched her hand, turning it into a sort of snake, and made it crawl across the pile of junk. She reeled it back in, now loaded with a bunch of balls.

"Wanna see my world famous juggling? The D's love it!" Spinel began juggling the balls with extreme dexterity.

"Spinel, I-I really don't have time for-"

"O-or if you prefer…" Spinel made a powerful throw, sending the balls to a bouncing trip across the room.

Steven ducked in time to save his head for being ball-smashed.

Then Spinel took a literal dive inside the pile of toys. Once she emerged, she was carrying the biggest ball Steven has ever seen. Must have been Jasper sized!

_How did I not see_ that _when I came in?_

"I can ride this bad boy for ages!" said Spinel, full of pride. "Now, I heard you can do some balancing too, but ya never had a real rival. At least 'till now! Check this out, ankle-biter!"

And without warning she jumped onto the ball and rolled over it, running circles across the room. When she reached the wall, she jumped; the ball bounced against the wall as Spinel made a mortal backflip. She flew a few seconds in the air before landing feet first on the ball, stopping its motion altogether.

"Ta dah! _"_

Steven's mouth felt open. He heard the pebbles clapping from their little nest, and he was tempted to do so too.

_Alright, that_ was _awesome_ , he decided _, but I have no time for this. Not when I am so close to get answers._

"Spinel."

The gem —who was bowing to her public of pebbles— went rigid at Steven's serious tone. She took the hand he was offering and got off the ball. Steven gave it a little kick and sent it rolling away.

"Look. I am flattered that you want to entertain me, really, I do!" Steven’s voice turned commanding. "But you don't have to. Remember, I. Am. _Not._ My mom. And I am _not_ your Diamond. Think of me as… a friend that came to visit, alright?"

The effect was the opposite of what Steven expected. Spinel looked away as her aura changed colors with shame.

"Doesn't that sounds good for you, or-"

"No, no it's… Its fine," her hands went to her hair, playing with her little heart buns. "Yeah, it's sounds good; it's just, um…"

SHRIIK.

The sound startled them both. A tiny pebble —the one with the goggles— was carrying with difficulty a diamond-shaped piece of metal. It was roughly the size of a hand, but thrice the size of the little buddy.

Spinel's smile grew so much it threatened to split her face apart. She picked the object —and the pebble with it.

"Oh its nothing," she said with a dismissing hand motion, "I was just hoping to beat you in a little game called _Empire_."

Steven's shoulders went stiff. _Ah, that's what that is_. Steven hasn't recognized the portable board, but in his defense, he hasn't played Empire in a while.

"I-I don't think that's a great idea," he walked back, slowly. "I mean, the Diamonds might call us to dinner any time soon. A-and the pebbles will probably get bored by watching us play. Besides, I am not even a good player in the first place."

"Yeah, yer probably right," Spinel held the diamond on her palm and made it spin over its vertices, "I have been playing with Yellow a lot and I am mad good at it. I wouldn't want to beat your butt too hard."

She whistled a happy tune that made Steven's blood boil.

"I mean, I am not _that_ bad. I have played with Yellow too. _A lot_. When I lived here, remember that I used to do that? I also played with the pearls AND on Earth. Just so you know it was _me_ who proposed changing the name to 'Empire' to begin with."

"Oooh, those are some wicked words for a goody like you," Spinel shifted herself taller as she said this, "But are you mean enough to beat good ol' Spinel?"

"Please stop calling yourself 'old Spinel'"

"Why don't _you_ make me?"

Spinel held the metallic object next to Steven's face. The reflective surface was covered with rust here and there, telling the age of the object, but it still showed Steven's face back to him. The Diamond eyes greeted him, reminding him to _calm the **fuck** down_. He shook his head and made them go away.

'Competitive' was not a word to describe Steven. He had the bad habit of measuring himself to others, that's true, but always regarding personal kinks like your personality or likeability or your willingness to help others. Winning a game said nothing about you, except that you had more skill than your opponent. And a bigger head.

With that said, this wasn't about the game, and both of them knew it. Spinel didn't want to entertain him; she wanted to keep him from asking questions. And perhaps, yes, to measure herself against him as a gem. A harmless way to settle this tension between them, once and for all.

And Stars, Steven would **love** to wipe that stupid know-it-all smile out of her face. For him _and_ for Val.

"Fine," he said. Spinel fist pumped the air. "But only one game! And then we talk serious business."

"Yea, yea, whatevuh you want!"

Spinel made a big leap and landed in the bed, bouncing on the mattress a few times. Steven sat opposite of her, just like before. She lied down the diamond board over the bed and the goggles-pebble at her side.

She pressed the center of the diamond. Several metal layers expanded around the diamond, one over the other, each one making a painful noise. Finally it made a long blip as the whole board, a roughly 2x2 rectangle, materialized before them. Two triangular pillars raised from each side; the controllers for each player. Spinel's was yellow. Steven's was white. This upset him for a reason he couldn't grasp.

Steven noticed Spinel was giggly on her size of the bed, rubbing her hands together like a maniac mastermind.

"Just one game, Spinel-"

"And then we talk business, yeah..." Spinel scratched her chin, "Tell you what, buck: you beat me to this; you can pry all of Pink's dirty laundry from me. Deal?"

Steven bit his under lip, an undeniable signal that this was a stupid decision.

"Seriously? For real?"

"Double cross my gem!"

It was settled then. Feeling full of decision, Steven pressed the button on the controller; the inner panel of the board shined green as the white pieces appeared on his side. Spinel did the same and her pieces manifested as well.

_One game. Just one game and I'll get all my answers_ , he reminded himself.

Just one game.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And there it was! 
> 
> Now that you guys had read it, i can say that this chapter and the next one used to be one single chapter. I divided it into two chapters for time as much as for convenience reasons, since otherwise it would have been too long to read.
> 
> Please, if you liked it dont be shy to comment! Your words are what keep me writing! Particularly in this chapter i am interested in how did you guys felt the dialogue? Does it flow well, is it easy to read? (Also... you guys like the sound effects? I am fond of them)
> 
> Anyway, see you all next time!


	3. Pink as you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> EL GASP!
> 
> Another chapter? For this fic? As likely as you think!
> 
> Sorry for the delay; i was working on another fic while i should have worked on this one. Plus, there is still that other longfic i'm still making. And i am still job searching... You can imagine how well its going.
> 
> Anyway, this fic has more characterization and a lot of dialogue, BUT dont worry, we got some plot too.
> 
> I hope you guys like it.

Steven made his final move, leading his amethyst right into Spinel's base. The holographic structure shook and crumbled before finally imploding for good. Thus ended their sixth game.

"HA! How do you like that?"

"No, no, nooo!" yelled Spinel pathetically, as she tried to hold together the holographic pile of dust that once was her base. "Ya destroyed Fort Awesome-times…"

Steven laughed at such overdramatic display. "That's right! I _fucked_ you up, Spinel!"

There was a brief silence, followed by the sound of Steven slapping his mouth shut. Spinel gasped. The pebbles —whom had abandoned their nest to sit around them as spectators— gasped as well.

"Steven... Universe…" said a very shocked Spinel. The red on Steven's face intensified. " _Oh_ , I am telling"

"Please don't use that word!"

"Too late! You used, that means I can use it too," Spinel crossed her arms, "It's da golden rule."

"It's the golden rule!" said one of the pebbles with great joy.

Steven's stomach dropped, for he knew what has coming…

"Fuck," said a pebble.

"Fuck!" repeated another.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" chanted the whole of them, as they made small jumps of joy.

Steven's embarrassment turned into a fit of giggles.

"Heh, ok, alright. I think I deserve that," he conceded, "but please, don't use it in front of the Diamonds. I don't think Homeworld is ready for that."

"Gotcha."

Spinel picked up a notebook and a pen from over the bed. There were also two glasses of water —the only beverage available in the room— on a table the pebbles had produced for them, right next to the bed. Steven picked the one that was his.

Steven's phone was also over the table, since Steven decided, a while ago, that they could use some _jams_. Goggles —the goggles pebble— was in charge of 'looking for fine tunes'. At the moment, he had settled for Steven's _Arctic Monkeys_ playlist.

"Let us see now," Spinel licked her finger and passed the pages of the notebook, "I won the first two games. You won the next one, and then I won the next one to that one. And you have won the last two. So that leaves us at, um…" she scratched her head, "Yup, I reckon we are tied."

Steven chocked with his drink.

"What?!" he yelped, as he cleaned the water out of his chin. " _Oh no_. That cannot be. We have to untie this! Otherwise, how are we going to know who is the worst of the universe?"

"Exactly!"

Spinel let out a chuckle that was both embarrassing and cute at the same time. The soft music was soothing and, for the first time through the whole day, Steven could feel himself actually relax.

"You know, I am actually having fun," he said, earning himself a confused glance. "I mean _real_ fun! It's so weird... I've always hated this game, but today I am living for it!"

Spinel gasped. " _Golly gee_! It's almost as if the gem made to entertain people actually knows a thing or two about _fun_."

"Heh, yeah I guess you do."

Spinel inflated her head twice its size. "I am sorry, couldn't hear ya. What was that again?"

"I said you were right."

"Louder. _Louder_!"

"I said you were right, Spinel!" shouted Steven, holding his hands like a megaphone.

Spinel punched his shoulder ever so slightly. "See? It wasn't so hard, was it champ?"

"Yeah... Thank you."

"Uh?" muttered Spinel, as her head went back to its usual size. "W-what for?"

"This," he signaled the mess that was the bed, with the board and the pebbles sitting in a circle around them. "All of this. I have been so stressed lately. The gems, the little homeschool, this mess with my powers which is only getting worse. All the stuff just… keeps piling up! It's nice to, you know, letting myself relax. And it was because of you, so, thanks."

A faint red painting Spinel's cheeks was the last reaction Steven expected. He had learnt that Spinel had two distinctive moods: ever-bouncing bubble of joy, and depressive pit of despair. He might have to add a third mood: bashful teenage girl.

"Anytime," muttered Spinel, playing with her hair like a schoolgirl.

Steven concealed his chuckles with his mouth.

 _Well, this beats her 'Barbie-girl, destroyer of worlds' mood by a mile_ , _that's for sure_ , he thought.

He felt all tension leaving his shoulders. It was like a balm was being applied to him, searing an old wound in his heart and mind. Perhaps he hasn't gotten the answers he wanted, but he was sure he wasn't gonna see Spinel in her dreams anytime soon. And _that_ was a victory.

"So uh…" Spinel cleared her throat, putting her shyness behind. "Let's begin the last round, shall we?"

She reached for the RESET button, but Steven's grabbed her hand.

"Wait. I got an idea, first," he said.

He reached for the table and grabbed his phone and put down Goggles back in his place. _Arabella_ Was playing.

"Want to take a selfie?"

Spinel's made the face someone with a giant interrogation mark over their head might make. "A what-now?"

"A selfie! Its, um, well it's a photo of us, to remember this moment forever —or until we take one that makes us look cooler. And it's great because you can upload it to Facebook, Instagram... I'll have to send it to you first, but…"

Steven's brain caught what his mouth was saying.

"Except I can't, because you don't have a phone."

"You mean those little rectangles humans invented to do the thinking for them?" she asked. Steven nodded — _she was not wrong_ —. "Why do I even need one?"

"Well… many gems in Homeworld have one now, that's a reason. And a lot of people on Earth. Also, they are great! They don't, like, _think_ for you if you don't want to, but they can store your jams, you can take pics with them, surf the internet —if you are in a Wi-Fi zone— or connect to the Homeworld's net and keep in touch with your friends."

Steven flinched when he said that, for Spinel's aura —which has grown three sizes since they started playing— shrunk a little bit.

 _Right. Still a sore spot_.

"Or, you know… you can hook into the Diamond's channel and we could be in touch while I am on Earth."

Spinel's aura made a slight jump, as did the real Spinel. Steven hold the board in place, fearing it would fall of the bed and break.

She landed on the mattress, making it go wobbly for a second. "Really?" she shouted. "Like, really, really?"

Steven nodded. She sat back in position, blushing once again.

"Yeah I-I would love t-that. Thank you."

Steven smiled, despite the tingle in his heart and gem. Keeping in touch with her was the right thing; he _knew_ that. With more time to interact, he can earn her confidence and ease her into opening out about everything. Pink, the Diamonds, Val…

_It's kinda shifty to think about her like that, but I gotta look at the bigger picture… Besides, I do like Spinel! I mean, just because I can get something out of this friendship doesn't mind it's not real. Right?_

He smacked himself at how stupid he sounded. Even the fact he was doubting himself was dumb; there was no time for doubt in his life. _Stupid, stupid Steven…_

He noticed Spinel was staring at him, so he smiled as if he hasn't just smacked his skull in front of her.

"Sorry, there is a... fly around here," he lied. "Anyway, I'll get you a phone, if you really want one."

Spinel looked like she was about to say something, but she just smiled and said: "Swell."

"Great! It's decided then. But first, the selfie."

He crawled over the bed, around the Empire's board, with care as to not turn any pebble into mush. He sat leg-crossed next to Spinel and opened his arm to her. She leaned against him, shyly.

"Alright, now we sat like that, together. A bit closer… There! Don't move. Now you gotta smile and say 'cheese'"

"Why do we have to say that?"

"Nobody know, but you gotta, or the photo isn't gonna look nice. I think the French invented that."

"Ohh, alright."

Steven snickered. _No harm done in getting a bit of fun at her expense._

Spinel did as she was told and smiled as if she had never smiled before —and knowing her story, it wasn't to far from the truth. Steven tried to measure to her happiness.

"Alright, ready? Three, two, one…"

"Cheese!" they said as the flash blinded them.

Steven rubbed his eyes as Spinel moved her head back and forth while her eyesight slowly came back.

"Oh boy, you should file _that_ as a war weapon."

"Hehe, yeah, it's a good camera," Steven dried the tears from his eyes, "Let's see the photo."

He pressed a button and the photo appeared before them. It was a good one, maybe a bit forced. The kind of photo you take when you decide 'hey, let's take a photo' instead of just, like, take one.

Spinel was enthralled by it, however. She has never seen a picture of herself before, and she loved it! She looked so happy and calm; miles better than what she thought she looked.

Wish she could say the same about Steven, whose expression was deep down into dread territory.

"5:45?!" he shouted, as he broke from Spinel's embrace. "It's that really the time on Earth? _Shit_."

Steven stood up quickly, ignoring the pebbles still hanging to his clothes. _How could have time fly so fast?_ They must be ridiculously worried back at Earth. He checked for lost calls. There were none.

That only raised his brain alarm to a curious 4 to an Earth-shattering 9.

"Gotta go" Steven proclaimed.

He paced around the room, collecting his stuff, chewing himself all the way.

"Shit, shit, shit…"

"Uh, Steven?"

"No Spinel, you can't use that word either."

"That's not what I was gonna said. I just wanted to know if you are fine."

"No, I am not _fine._ Look at the time! The gems must be worried sick about me and I have been wasting my whole day here!"

"Oh," said Spinel with a pinch of pain.

Steven stopped walking. She looked like a puppy that has just been kicked; and he was the puppy-kicker. The familiar guilt went through his spine, as did the knowledge that _he didn't have time for_ this _._

"Well, but It wasn't a _huge_ waste, right?" said Spinel, "I mean, you said it yourself. Sometimes it's good to relax."

Steven bit his inner cheek. "Yes, I said that. But not if I have to reschedule the stuff I had to do and leave it to my friends to take care of it," he replied. "Did you know I had to book everything to Pearl and the other gems while I am here?"

"So what? You don't think Pearl can look over the fort while you are gone?"

"No, I-"

"I mean, she was always task-oriented as far as I recall, so she must be totally fine."

Steven scratched his head with violence. The sudden pain felt right.

"That's NOT the point," he said. "Little Homeschool was my idea. I should be there to take care of it."

Spinel sat uncomfortable on bed; her head was tilted like a student who was just not getting it.

"Ya losing me, Steven, cause as far I remember, you…" her stretched hand pointed at Steven's chest, "Had given up on going home 'till morrow, right?"

"Y-yes, but-"

"And you booked it all on the gems. And they are, like, three! Four, if ya split the fusion apart. I don't really see what's eating ya."

Steven hid his face in his hand and let out a single, charged exhalation.

"Forget it, you don't understand."

"Oh, I don't understand?" shouted Spinel, but Steven paid her no mind.

He grabbed his jacket from the nest the pebbles had made. He put all his stuff in his pockets and, once he was ready, he made a move towards the door. And he was swiftly blocked by Spinel, jumping into his line of sight.

"Well _excuse me_ , mistah 'Space Prince'," said Spinel with a perverse giggle, "Maybe I am too stupid to understand your grand, ulterior motives. Because from where I'm standing, you were having the time of yer life a second ago, and now you are shifting back to being a train wreck! It’s almost as if you enjoy feeling like compressed garbage."

Steven closed his eyes tight. The world around him had become too loud, too lighted, too much; the anger was rising up his chest and the light in his gem was **burning** him.

"My stress is not on question here," said Steven, slowly, "that's not the point."

Spinel grew twice in size. "Then what IS da point?!"

"The point is that I NEED to be there! I NEED to make sure everything is done right! I NEED to supervise everything, to control that every gem is getting along, to see if they are adapting to their jobs _and_ to the humans. And if something goes wrong —a _nd oh, you better believe something's gonna go wrong at some point_ —, I need to be there to fix it."

He took a deep breath and shouted, almost cried. "Because that's my life, Spinel! Fixing stuff that's broken, which seems to be everything in the universe! I can't drop all of that on the gems. It's **my** responsibility. That's why I don't take days off, that's why I don't relax, and that's why I don't have time to spare playing games here with you!"

Once Steven ran out of air, he stopped talking. Two things came to his mind at the same time. One, Spinel was shaking; her aura spinning wildly out of control, a symptom of her going down a spiral.

And two, that the world was looking way too _pink_.

The truth hit him like a gut punch. He shook his head, breathed out and clenched his teeth so hard it hurt. The light receded into his gem and his hue went back to normal. The harm was done, though.

"Spinel…" he breathed to the shaking gem in front of him. He was tired, so tired, and she wasn't at fault this time. "I-I am sorry Spinel, I lost it. I-it's what I told you about my powers, they are out of control! But I-I shouldn't have said all that stuff. I have a lot on my shoulders, but I do enjoy playing with you."

Steven reached for her. If he could touch her, hold her, if she could cry on his shoulder, things would be alright. But he only held the air, as Spinel shrank from his reach. She hugged herself, eyes glued on the floor. It was a very specific gesture… Fear of being harmed. Which was the last thing Steven wanted. Even if she drove him insane sometimes, that wasn't him!

_But she believes I am going to hurt her. I won't but… she thinks I will. Fuck, what difference does it make? I might as well have stabbed her in the back already._

Another thing he — _not his mom_ — had done wrong. And the list was getting long.

"Spinel, I-"

"It's ok," she cried. When she looked up to him, Steven saw tiny drops on her eyes. "I am used to it. And, heh, at least y… at least you told it to my face, that's good."

The implication of that phrase made Steven sick, and he had to make an effort to not throw up right there.

"I should go," he rushed to say, "I'm sorry I made you upset."

His hands found his pockets. Only then Steven noticed his phone was missing. He looked back and saw it on the bed; discarded from where they had took the selfie. _Do I wanna know?_ Was playing now.

He grabbed his phone and turned off the music. When he turned around, he was stopped once again by Spinel's hand. Her arm was long stretched as her body was still near the door.

"Wait," she said and closed the gap between them in one single long leap.

She extended her other arm and pressed the button on the controller. The yellow base and pieces respawned, good as new and ready for war again.

"Let's do one more game," she said with a faint smile, "for all the glory."

"Spinel, I don't think that's a good-"

She rose up one silencing finger.

"One turn, one question, one answer," she proceeded. Steven's eyes opened wide. "That's right. No games, no tricks, no _may-bes_. Ya wanted answers and ya are going to get them."

"In fact, I'll double the bet," she added. "If I won, we play 'Spinel says', and we have to do whatever I want," she grabbed Steven's hand. Her hold was very weak. "You will stay here 'till morrow. We can play, we can talk —about anythin' that is not _Her_. And you will spend more quality time with the D's."

"And if I win?"

"Then we play 'Steven says', and you can do…" she bit her lip, "whatever ya want... Stay or leave; your call. In fact, I'll cover you up with the D's. What do you say?"

Steven stare intensified; even with his normal eyes, Spinel felt like he was drilling holes into her being.

Quite appropriate feeling, since Steven was staring at her aura. There were _a lot_ of conflicting emotions in her, but he couldn't see 'deceit'. That didn't mean she wasn't plotting something; his Aura Seeing revealed the gem's emotions, not their motives. Just because Spinel didn't feel 'deceitful' didn't mean she wasn't up to something.

_Maybe this is Spinel's way to open up? 'Hey! Wanna play a game of Empire and ask me super uncomfortable questions that I couldn't answer on my own?'_

Steven nodded at that logic. All gems, even those that love their newfound freedom, are still tied to their old roles. Like a computer programmed to do deep arithmetic being used to play _The Sims_. Spinel _was_ made to play games, so she picked one in which she had no choice but to tell the truth.

One has to wonder what 'game' she was playing when she tried to poison the Earth.

" _Come oooon_ , Universe," Spinel's grasp around Steven's hand tightened, "what do you have to loose? You have a fifty-fifty chance of winning and having it your way. And even if ya loose, you still got yer answers. I'm basically giving ya all the cards here."

Steven bit his lips. Another bad choice was coming…

He let go of Spinel's hand and sat back on his side. He pressed the button and summoned his units.

"Let's do it."

* * *

'Tactical War Simulator', commonly called 'Empire' in Era 3, was essentially chess with a bigger headache.

You have a base with five pillars, representing its hitpoints. To win, you have to reduce your enemy base's hitpoints to zero. For this purpose you have an army of quartz soldiers of different classes, each one with their own movement speed and attack power.

Now, Steven and Spinel were at the same skill level. They both sucked. Which, going back to it, must be the reason why he's been having so much fun. Whenever he played with Yellow Diamond, it felt like a lesson in war and strategy. Playing with Blondie was not much different. He had even played with Pearl and Connie on Earth a while ago, but he didn't have fun those times neither. Bad winners, both of them.

With Spinel, he felt like he was playing an actual game.

The stakes, however, were higher now. Empire's matches could last a dozen turns or just a few, so Steven will have to make every question count.

"I'll start," said Steven.

"Whatever," said Spinel.

Steven moved his first amethyst one square forward.

"Were you aware of my mom's powers and what happened to her pearl?"

"Mm… those are two questions in one…" said Spinel, "but I'll allow it. Yep, I was."

"How-"

"Ap-pap-pap," Spinel put her hand right in front of his face, "One turn, one question, one answer. You used your turn and now its mine."

She raised her finger and kept it in the air for a second, and then she pressed a button. One of her citrines moved forward.

"You didn't plan on staying here, right? No matter what I did."

"You can ask me stuff too?"

"Just answer the question."

Steven tapped his finger against the controller pillar. _No point in lying now._

"I was gonna stay for dinner, then I was gonna text Pearl to call me with a lie that there was an emergency," Steven's voice became smaller as he spoke. "I am sorry."

"It’s cool. I already imagined it."

The game moved forward, and with each turn, so did the questions.

"Alright, tell me what you know about Pink Diamond's powers. And please, don't be afraid to use _details_ ," said Steven.

"Okay, okay, don't get ya panties into a knot," said Spinel. "Let's see… she was pretty destructive our girl; her screams could shatter walls, her stomps could break concrete and make kilometrical cracks on Homeworld, and yes, when she was super depressed and cried, the ground where the tears felt on would wither and turn into dust."

She shrugged. "You live one day, you are dead the other. That's just it for organics. Yer turn."

"Mm? Oh, right, right… So l-lets go back to that because I thought her killing touch was a… defect or a secret evil superpower. Her tears were supposed to heal."

"Woah there, _vaquero_. You are going _waaay_ forward in time. Yea, she learned how to heal —somehow—, but it wasn't _always_ like that. Back in the day, her tears were weaponized by the D's and released against harmless garden planets."

"T-that can't be true!"

" _Oh, but it is_. Were didja thought I found the Bio-Poison? Pink found a way to replicate the formula so she wouldn't have to cry every time the D's wanted to 'clean slate' a planet… Are, uh, are ya alright? You're lookin' a tad… jelly."

One look confirmed to Steven that, yes, his hand were shaking.

_Sure, I am fine, just another pile of my family's stinking sins got dropped on my shoulders. Nothing to worry about._

"I'm okay," he lied and drew his attention to the board.

Suddenly, having his carnelian soldiers fighting Spinel's amethyst army felt offensive. Still, he moved another piece forward, initiating his attack.

"So, since we are at that topic already, where did you found the Bio-Poison?"

"An ol' Diamond's weapons storehouse. I went there once with ya mama. They had lotta 'fun' gizmos there, like my rejuvenator! It's also where they stored the 'killing juice', which is what I really wanted... The D's must had run out of it at some point, thought, cause there was barely 'nuff to fill my injector."

"A-ha. What about your injector then? Where did you found it?"

"It's mine," they were quiet for a while, "What? It is! Is the one they used to make me, so I reckon that makes it mine."

"Are you serious?"

"Yea! Didn't ya notice the giant heart-shaped spinel at the top?"

"Not really. I was distracted staring at the abyss you had me hanging above."

Spinel's hair frizzled. "Heh, yeah… good times."

Her finger played with the contour of the controller. Her pieces were advancing nicely into Steven's territory. She pressed the button to advance her assault.

"Do you still hate me for trying to kill you?" she asked.

"No."

They were quiet for a while. Even the pebbles, always so happy and cheery, were sharing silent glances. They were now sitting in hand-made bleachers, resting atop a small platform in a hole in the wall.

"Ok, fine!" shouted Steven, finally. "I'm conflicted."

"Oh."

Steven stretched the skin of his face. "Please, try to understand. I was in so. Much. Stress. Do you know what it's like to dismantle an empire? To tell thousands of planets, 'hey, guess what, you don't have to follow the Diamonds anymore and you can be free'."

"Free," repeated Spinel. "I imagine most folks didn't take the news well."

"No, they didn't."

For a moment, Steven wasn't there anymore. He was at the fields of _Saurus 10_ , in the middle of the battlefield between the fanatic loyalist and the modern rebels, trying to convince both bands to give peace a chance. But they wouldn't listen.

His hand gripped the sheet; he felt the softness of the fabric, each one of the delicate strands that made it, and held on that feeling to stay grounded on reality.

"My point is that y-you tried to destroy my planet. The only safe place I had in the universe," said Steven. "You tried to kill my friends."

Spinel hugged herself. She was shaking, as was her aura. It was twisting around itself, turning into something horrible and unrecognizable.

"But…" said Steven with a long sigh, "I don't hate you."

"But ya haven't forgiven me either."

Steven wanted to say that he was close to; at least it felt that way not long ago.

"It's pretty hard to forgive someone whose last time you saw was laughing as she was about to kill you," he said.

"Then why didn't you come 'till now?"

Steven didn't answer, mostly because he didn't have one single reason. He was busy on Earth, and he trusted the Diamonds were doing alright on their own. And they were! And that was the most upsetting thing.

A part of him liked that they had missed him so much. He liked to be wanted, to be needed. And that feeling was so repulsive he had to hit his knee several times to drown it down. By the change in Spinel's aura, she definitely noticed what he was doing.

"Fine, keep ya secrets. I don't even care," she said finally. Steven breathed out in relief. "Your turn now. Got any more questions?"

"Mmm… Let's go back to my mom's powers," he said. "Could she get into other's people's minds? Possess them? Move at the speed of sound? You said she could glow with energy but could she release it-?"

"Woah, woah! I ain't a peridot to count, but that sounded like more than _one_ question."

"They are all part of the same question."

Spinel tapped her gemstone rhythmically. "Fair 'nuff," she sighed. "You already got some stuff right. Her super strength and speed were there. I had no idea 'bout the 'mind control powers' you just said she had. She never used them on me…"

She stopped, as if waiting the answer of an unspoken question.

"Anyway… I _did_ know about the light stuff, but I only saw it once. I was in the garden, pruning the trees, waiting for her —as I usually did,” Spinel spat that last part. "And she came back made a fury; a whole hurricane was spinning around her. It almost blew me away! I tried to reach to her, but she ordered me to hide, so I took cover behind a wall and then…"

Spinel closed and opened her fists very fast. "A flash and a BOOM! When everything stopped being so blinding white, I came out of my hiding hole. The whole garden was in ashes."

Steven covered his mouth but Spinel laughed.

"Sorry it’s just… You should have _seen_ how MAD Yellow was! I thought they were gonna change her name to _Red_. And s-she threatened ya mom. She said 'if you don't start behaving we'll just take your Spinel away'" she said in a perfect mock up of Yellow's voice. "And Pink stepped forward and begged her not to. 'Please, don't do that! I can change! I will change! I promise! Just don't… don't take her away'."

Spinel kept smiling, but there was no emotion behind her grin.

"She stood up for me. It was the nicest thing anyone has ever done for me until… you."

She looked at Steven with… Hope? _Ah, that's it_. She was trying to reach out to him. Steven extended his hand and Spinel took it, with no little hesitation.

After a while, Steven felt confident enough to let go of her hand and make his move on the board.

"And… how did she do it?" he asked.

"Did what?"

"Change. How did she go from destroyer to healer?"

"I don't know... Don't give me that sassy look, I don't!" Spinel showed her empty hands. "Look. Ya mama was a slick one. And ol' me didn't have a care 'bout her secrets. All I know is that one day, she came to the garden all jumpy and bumpy and crazy and showed me a pot of dirt. Then she cried into it and…"

She made a POP noise.

"A sprout came out. Since then, she was calmer… Gentler. And if she got mad at Yellow and Blue, she would cry all over the plants in the garden. And _boy_ she got mad a lot."

"And she never told you how she learnt to give life?"

"She mentioned a lab once or twice… I don't really remember. She never took me there, so I never asked. That's all I have, chap. Sorry."

Steven took a moment to take all that information in. Then he took a moment to groan and fall back over the mattress. So his mom _did_ find a way to control her powers and use them to heal, instead of destroy… But a lab? Where could that even be?

_Maybe the vanity where I found the pebbles? No, I went there many times, and the only thing there is her diary and some old drawings… Which means this is another mystery of her I have to solve. Why is that whenever I took one step forward I also have to take two back?_

Steven hid his face under the pillow and groaned. He stood quiet, waiting for his head to stop pounding. He went out from under his pillow cave when he felt a hand picking his chest.

"Hey there… How are you holding up?" said Spinel. She had stretched her neck to peck over him, while her body was still on the other side of the bed.

"I'm fine," Steven said as he sat up. "I'm just tired of my mom's secrets, that's all. But that's not your fault. Thanks for answering my questions… I understand it must have been difficult."

Spinel smiled and shrugged, but said no word on the contrary.

"You up to, er… finish our game?"

Steven buffed. _Yea… why not?_ It’s not like there was much else to do. Spinel's aggressive strategy had earned her a lot of ground and had cost Steven most of his units. He only had a few amethysts and a carnelian; all packed together like deer against a wall. He _could_ try to outmaneuver Spinel's soldiers… but becoming 'the worst in the universe' was not worth it. Steven was sure he already earned that title.

If he was going to loose soon, though, he might as well make his last questions count.

He pressed a button moved his carnelian to the side, directly into Spinel amethysts' range of attack.

"So… how are you doing?" he asked.

"Oooh, we hittin' close and personal now, uh?" Spinel laughed; her aura was somewhat brighter now. "I am fine. How's the ol' Fam doing?"

"Fam? Oh, you mean my family? They are ok. Busy, like I told you. Little Homeworld requires a lot of supervision… Are the Diamond's treating you right?"

"Heck yea! They are great. I mean, they are _they_ , ya know. But they treat me alright. Blue loves my jokes, but Yellow is more partial to my physical comedy. White is a harder nut to crack, but I'm getting hotter… How's Earth doing? Is it-"

"It healed. We healed it completely, if that was worrying you…"

By the long exhalation Spinel took, that was definitely the case.

"What I meant about the Diamonds is if they are being, I don't know, _nice_ to you? Back there, you seemed a little tense," said Steven.

"Nah, that's just… that was just me being a weirdo. They are fine. I'm fine."

"Mm… they made you live here though. Do you like it?"

Spinel was quiet before she moved another one of her jaspers. She was getting closer to Steven's base.

"What choice do I have?" she said. "They gave this room specifically to me. I can't just... _give it back_."

"Of course you can," said Steven slowly, as if explaining the ABC to a kid. A 6000 years old Immortal alien kid. "You can live whenever you want."

"Pss, ya just want the room for yourself."

"Stop that. I said you can keep it, remember? I don't even live here anymore."

"Yeah… must be rough, uh? Being so busy, having so many gems want to be around you-"

"Of course it's tough! All of the gems that were left with nothing to do come to Earth to get a life. They come to me! It's a hell lot of work!"

They were silent for a while. There were a few moves left, two for each one of them.

Steven moved his carnelian back. "You could move in with the pearls."

"HA!" laughed Spinel, "Good one."

"Explain to me why not?"

"They just don't like me, ok?"

"Why? Did they told you anything or-"

"No! It's… I know they don't like me, that's all."

Steven looked at the board. He was up to his final white piece. His base was surrounded by Spinel's yellow pieces. It was inevitable. With nothing else to do, he moved his last amethyst forward.

"Is it because you stole Blondie's board?"

Spinel's aura jumped, as did Spinel herself. She had a deer in headlights look.

"I… I didn't… how do you-?"

"I picked up some clues," explained Steven. "First of, the colors: each Diamond —and their pearls— have Empire boards with their colors, and they always play against white pieces —except White, of course, who plays against pink pieces. If this board were yours, the pieces would be pink and white, not white and yellow. Second… look at the state of this thing! The buttons on my controllers are a bit wonky and the color faded a while ago; also, it made those horrible clanking noises when you opened it. Its super old, but Blondie is very attached to it cause it's the first thing she ever owned, a gift from Yellow herself; and I remember cause we used to play with it when I lived here. And if it's really Blondie's, she wouldn't have given it to you willingly. She would have gifted you a new one. Like I said, she is very attached to this piece of junk."

Spinel's jaw dropped, and dropped; until it was so stretched it hit the bed, tongue out and all.

"Also, you sold yourself with that reaction."

The pebbles around them clapped and cheered. Spinel picked her under chin and put it back in place with a loud biting sound.

"So…" said Steven, "care to explain?"

Spinel's lips were tight shut, quite literally, as if she was afraid she would say something wrong if she opened her mouth. She pressed the button on her controller and made her final move. Her jasper went right inside Steven's base; that's a 5 hitpoints attack.

The white base shook and crumbled into holographic dust, as light shined on Spinel's side, declaring her the winner.

"Heh, would you look at that. I believe I won," she said as she scratched her neck. "What do you say we take five and go get some fresh air?"

Steven crossed his arms. "You didn't answer my question."

" _Golly_ , I would love to, Stevie… _buuut_ ya lose the game, which means we are playing Spinel's says now."

She pressed the button on the side of the board; there were CLANKS and SHIFTS as the many layers juxtaposed one over the other, turning the board back to its original diamond shape.

"And Spinel says the ask department is close. Come back in the morrow."

She picked the board and stood up. A gust of wind, all too familiar and intimidating, hit her in the face. When she dared to look, Steven was holding her by the wrist. She held the board closer to her chest.

"Spinel, you can't just steal stuff from others people. That's wrong! Do you know that?"

Spinel hissed. "Yea Steven, I _know_ stealing its wrong. Thanks for assuming I am dumb."

"Assuming you- I am not doing that at all! I am just trying to understand."

Spinel was looking anywhere but at him. Her aura was stuck in a growing and shrinking loop —which meant she was frantically thinking.

"I-I don't know why I did it, ok?" she said, defeated. "I just wanted to play b-but not with Blondie. And one day, I was taking a walk around Yellow's palace, saw her room, open door and empty, saw the board on the table and…"

She showed her hand with the object, as if her illogical logic was somewhat logical.

It wasn't.

"In any case, I was gonna slid it back in her room whenever she is out."

Steven felt Spinel shifting her form under his hand and saw her shrinked hand and arm slither free from his grasp in a snake-like motion. She then blew into her finger, enlarging her hand back in shape.

"Besides, if it were so important to her, she would have noticed it was lost ages ago."

 _Ok, now Steven was seeing_ pink. For once, he didn't understand why Spinel was acting like this was not a big deal, especially since she KNOWS stealing is wrong. On the other, he really didn't want her to get in trouble. Not with the Diamonds, and definitely not with _Blondie_.

Despite his good sense, he was forced to see the bigger picture again.

"Fine," he said. "If you return it, we'll leave this whole thing between you and me, and we won't talk about it. Deal?"

Spinel snapped her fingers. "Deal."

"Great. Let's go."

Steven grabbed the board and moved towards the door, but he was yanked so swiftly he felt to the ground.

"Woah, there! Where do you think yer goin' now?"

"Uh, to return the board? Blondie must be with Yellow now, if she is not still on Earth. We can go there and come back and no one will know."

They were both joined by the board, which both of them were holding onto like their lives depended on it. Steven stood up and tugged to his side. Spinel, naturally, tugged to her own.

"Nop. Not going now."

"Wha-Why the hell no?"

"Cause… I don't know! I don't want to do it now, and that's it."

She yanked the board harder, walking circles around Steven, but his massive strength meant the board didn't left his hands. It was like dog chained to a tree, trying desperately to break free, only to grow dizzier and madder by the second.

"Why… are you being… so difficult," shouted Steven as he made circles in his spot, following Spinel frenzied struggle.

He felt stupid. It _was_ stupid, the whole thing. He could hear an invisible crowd laughing madly at this sitcom gag —or maybe it was the pebbles, he wasn't sure. _But Hell was he going to let her get it her way!_

"You. Are being. Difficult!" she stood her ground, enlarging her hands to a gigantic size and picking the board with two fingers. "I told you I would return it later! You don't have to supervise me like I am some sort of dumb. Stupid. Gem!"

In an effort to get a better leverage, she put her weight on one foot and raised the other high. Specifically, up to Steven's face. It landed on his cheek, dusting him with dirt. He growled as his hue turned pink.

" **Ugh, FINE!** "

Steven shoved her. Or, that's what he wanted to do. Shove her, push her away, and make a little space to breathe between them because she was being suffocating right now.

What he did, however, was punch her in the gut. The strength of his Diamond heritage, mixed with the energy of his gem, was enough to launch Spinel flying across the room and crashing hard against the pink marble wall with such a raw force a long crack grew all the way to the roof. Several pieces of wall fell down around her inert body.

Steven's normal hue came back as what he has done sank into him.

"Oh my gosh!" he gasped out loud and ran to the hole.

He moved aside the loose pieces of wall and debris, until Spinel came into view. She seemed fine, just knocked out. Steven grabbed her by the shoulders and helped her sat against the wall —or what was left of it.

"Spinel… Spinel look at me," he pleaded. Spinel opened her eyes. "I am so sorry! A-are you alright?"

"Ugh… yeah?"

"You sure?"

Spinel cracked her neck and tried to focus her head; it took holding it with both hands to make the world stop spinning.

"Yeah just… ugh… my head. I could have sworn I was face planted by Yellow," she stretched her back, hearing it crack. "Gee-louse! Take it softer on a gem next time, soldier."

Steven relaxed. _If she can afford to be witty, she must be fine_. He put a hand on his chest, listening to his racing heart as it slowed down its march.

CRACK.

And now it was beating like a horse again.

Steven looked at Spinel for any crack; she touched her gem, but it was still in one piece. A flash of light caught their attention; it came from under a long piece of fallen wall, along with a horrible chirping noise. They moved together the debris and found the source of such scandal.

The board was hardly in one piece anymore; the cables and circuits were exposed, right in the middle were it had been broke in half. Its surface was glowing and fading, drawing strange forms in the air, trying to summon the holograms as it was programmed to, but completely incapable of keeping the pieces in shape.

Steven covered his mouth as not to yelp. Spinel lost herself to the panic.

"No… no, no!" she tried to pick up the object, but once she got a hold on one half, the other would fall back, and so on; like the film of a broken tape.

She pressed the button to open it many times, only to receive a painful BIP in response. The internal circuits went crazy, sending sparks flying around and releasing such a heat Spinel would have been burnt if she were human. The machine glowed one last time, in a final attempt to summon the pieces, which evaporated in the air when the internal battery gave its last breath and died. The board went dark and silent.

Steven covered his face to the horror. Blondie's precious possession was now nothing more than several metal plates and circuits loosely held together.

Spinel dropped the useless thing on the ground with a loud CLANK. Nobody spoke. Even the pebbles said nothing as they watched the whole scene unfold.

There was no beating around the bush; _Steven has fucked it up_.

"Spinel…" he tried; his voice merely a whisper.

The gem said nothing. She was lost to the world and her aura was small and spinning, as she descended down a dark spiral.

"Spinel I- oh Stars… I am so sorry. B-but maybe, er… maybe we can fix it… Here, let me-"

BAM.

He heard the noise the fist made against his chin before he could react to the pain. The assault was so fast Steven's own self preservation instincts didn't kick in, and no shield appeared. He stopped rolling on the ground when his back hit the side of the bed. Pain coursed through his whole body as he laid face on the floor.

He tilted his head up to see Spinel; her fists the size of a bowling ball, glaring daggers at him. Her aura was spiky and shifting; that meant _rage_.

When Spinel met his gaze it hit what she had just done and, in a whim of panic, she positioned herself in four and used her legs as a spring, shooting herself like a bullet across the room. When she was about to hit the door, she extended her hand and pressed the button.

She landed outside the chamber, safe and sound, and ran away.

Steven wasted no time and followed her; he stepped into the hallway and saw Spinel's ponytails as she escaped.

"SPINEL!" he called to her.

She stopped to look at him and mutter something. An apology _._ Then she sprinted away; her shoes making a squeaky noise that echoed and faded the further away she went.

Steven didn't doubt; he closed the door and gave chase, following her into the deepest, most abandoned hallways of the Palace; his heart beating like crazy and his gut making leaps. The gem on his belly was **burning**.

_Stars… I really messed up now._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There you go!
> 
> I know what you guys are thinking: its very difficult to like Spinel in this. But please, PLEASE keep in mind that we are seeing stuff from STEVENS point of view. Stuff that may seem weird from his/our perspective make perfect sense in Spinel's mind. We'll see some of that in the next chapter.
> 
> For this chapter i want to know what you guys thought of the dialogues; did it all flowed well? Was it easy to read? Stuff like that.
> 
> Also, i want to clarify that i wont be posting anything else until the show's over (for time reasons). But dont worry: regardless of the ending of SUF, this fic will remain the way i imagined it at first (well, maybe with some added characterization, but the same plotwise), and i will write it to the end.
> 
> With that said, be ready, because next chapter gonna have some ACTION!
> 
> See you guys soon!

**Author's Note:**

> There you go!
> 
> This fic will be longer than the last one, as you can see. It wont be thousands of chapters long, however, probably just 5 or so, but long ones like this one.
> 
> As usual, your comments make my day and help me move forward!
> 
> See ya!


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